Protocol
by Aldapan
Summary: (AU) Cagalli is forced into an abusive political engagement with Yuna Roma Seiran for the sake of their nation which is fraying at the seams. Athrun is a faithful humanoid robot that has watched over Cagalli since she was a child and has been ordered to stand-by as Cagalli suffers in silence under her fiancé's violent hand. They begin to formulate a plan: escape at all costs.
1. Chapter 1

Stage I: Household

"Fleetingly, this body—if it's for happiness or if it's for sorrow;  
It is something you just can't understand."

* * *

The blonde sighed tepidly as her glazed over eyes peered at the documents that were spread over her desk, a trail of paperwork that told stories of tax treaties, pending meetings with local delegations, a failing education system and failing infrastructure, and other mayhem that seemed to have accumulated under her fiancé's control and running of their country. She herself had been appointed Minister to the Ministry of the Interior but it seemed that she was tasked more and more with affairs that went beyond the borders and bled into the world around them. She was quite apt at her job, herself a prodigy daughter by their late leader, but she had been too young to assume charge of the country when her father had passed three years ago. Her now fiancé, the lavender haired Yuma Roma Seiran, had taken over, much to her annoyance that the National Congress had deemed her too young and inexperienced, and his rule had been inconsistent across the board.

Sitting back in her plush chair, Cagalli pushed her feet out from under her and crossed them, her fingers tracing over a lengthy document written by the Minister of Science, Development, and Technology. Reaching to flick on the decorative desk lap, she felt her eye tire at the sight of such dense text that dotted the page and seemed to continue on to infinite proportions. It was the newest and youngest of the Ministries, introduced by her father when she was merely four years old, but it was also the most problematic ones. Plagued with issues since day one, the Ministry of Science, Development, and Technology had been firebombed, graffitied, and egged countless times. Its workers, both scientists and government paper pushers, were under constant harassment and they often relied on the Ministry of the Interior's collaboration to install national police around the building to ensure that the workers were able to work in relative but uneasy peace.

"What is this nonsense?" She muttered to herself as she slumped in her chair and brought the paper closer to her eyes as she blinked owlishly, reading over the bulletin once again. Her amber eyes raked over the details as she ran them through the constant machine that was her brain as she digested the status update from the Ministry of Science and the request for more protection details to escort even more workers that had some minimal status. She knew that the latest technology that the Ministry had approved had been met with immense backlash by both left and right wing factions but she had not realized that it had left most of the Ministry's workers feeling on-edge and anxious. Cagalli knew that this was a problem that was due to boil over at some point and she clicked the mouse on her computer as she opened the spreadsheets that showed the allocation of the police force and what else she could potentially spare in a gesture of good will to her fellow Minister.

Her fingers typed in a few words as she looked at the numbers and she grunted when she realized that the numbers were not adding up correctly and she began to mutter curses under her throat towards her fiancé when she noticed it had been auto signed by him. Her fingers danced over the spattering of paperwork and reached for the phone as she dialled the number to an external line that fell outside the government's range. She drummed her fingertips on the desk impatiently as she hummed in her throat, her eyes roving over the spreadsheets as she tried to justify moving some national police from the embassy district to the central district where most ministry buildings were located. The city's distribution ensured that the residential area was kept residential, the foreign embassies were tucked away in a secure part of the city's hilly terrain, and the government and commercial areas were expansive but walkable. It had been a massive urbanization project that had been renowned in its era but was falling into a state of repair.

"Yes?" The familiar voice picked up and sounded jovial as ever. Cagalli smiled lightly at the sound of her twin brother's voice and she whispered a greeting into the phone, sighing at the momentarily relief of connecting with someone who never pressured her to make snap decisions.

"Kira, are you around the central district?" She queried as she jotted down on a scrap piece of paper to allocate fifty police officers from the smaller neutral embassy grouping and decided it would have to serve for the Ministry of Science, Development, and Technology's needs at the moment. The police force was shrinking due to financial constraints that their nation had never faced before and she knew that Yuna's hand in the government's running was responsible for the horrendous spending habits as well as a growing deficit.

"Erm, I'm a few neighbourhoods away on the Western side, but do you need something?" Kira replied with his own question and Cagalli could hear the concern picking up in his voice. She very rarely called him—he was often the one who called to ensure that his sister was not overworking herself to the bone—and he felt a lump of nervous tension slowly rise in his throat at the thought that something was bothering her on such a fundamental level for her to disturb him. Kira, although a diplomatic individual who had been able to graduate from the technical university and was offered time and time again to join the ranks of the Ministry of Defence, had opted to be a school teacher and was set in his ways of not helping Yuna's government amass even more of a military technology complex than it already had.

"I was just wondering if you had time for dinner later," She said in an even voice as she saved the spreadsheet and closed it before casting her golden stare down on the document once more, jotting a few more notes down to remind her to answer the Minister's request tomorrow. "We haven't seen each other in a while—I know you're busy at the school and with the tech project for the kids." She could nearly feel her brother's smile melt through the telephone at the mention of his project he was pioneering to involve kids in exploring programming robots and he let out a warm chuckle.

"Well, I suppose I could—Lacus is still visiting her family and won't be back until later this week," Kira relented. "I was honestly just going to eat the leftovers of last night's take-out anyway." Cagalli grimaced at her brother's confession to tending to eat poorly when he pink haired wife was visiting her family overseas. Lacus had immigrated to their country when she was fifteen to pursue a career in music but had decided to stay out of love for Cagalli's twin. While her musical stint had been short and fairly successfully, she, too, had pursued the path of education and worked in a school for children that were interested in chasing after music as opposed to the hard sciences. They had been married the year before and Cagalli truly felt a sense of gratitude towards the ex-songstress who had been able to ensure that Kira's bad habits did not get the best of him.

"I wouldn't tell Lacus you've been ordering food in," Cagalli warned dryly with a surly grin. "She wouldn't been impressed."

"You're telling me," Kira agreed with another chuckle. "I'll be out front in a few hours—oh, let's say six-fifteen? Does that work?"

"Perfectly, I'll see you then," Cagalli said into the telephone and let out a chuckle at the mention of not wanting to eat a spicy chilli kebab. She agreed as she hung up the phone, shaking her head at her brother's obvious dislike towards anything that held a bite of spice. They very rarely got to enjoy time together as siblings and as much as Cagalli adored Lacus and her wonderful way of making anyone feel welcomed and treated like royalty, she missed the one-on-one time that she used to have with her brunette twin. Her time now was split between her government duties and her unwillingness to bond with her fiancé that had taken residence in her family's comfortable yet modest house without her permission six months prior.

Her engagement to Yuna Roma Seiran had been unpleasant and unrequited as she had been called before the Congress one dreary and rainy morning. She had just arrived after been shuttled to the Ministry by one of the government cars and she was sopping wet as she stomped into the grand chamber. The Leader of the House had clucked his tongue in disapproval at her disheveled appearance but he silenced himself under her steady glower. Despite her father's legacy and her bloodlines, she was still seen as too green by many of her peers and had been often looked down upon by others who lacked an appreciation for her extensive skill and knowledge in all realms of the political world.

She could recall, always with a shiver down her spine, when her forced engagement had been announced to strengthen the political union between the two factions of the government that caused more problems and headaches given that the Seiran family was staunchly supported by the right and conservative citizen block and her father and herself were backed by the left. The Congress had approved Yuna's request of a political marriage for the sake of national unity and harmony, invoking an outdated law that had not been revoked as it had fallen into the ruins of the older regimes, and Cagalli remembered her refusal before the law was thrust her under nose. As she scanned the documents and found her spirits dropping further and further as she read it over and found little to no escape, she threatened to take the Congress to a judicial hearing but was silenced when one particularly crafty congressman mentioned that by refusing to marry Yuna, she would be further escalating the conflict between the two distinct factions that existed within the nation and her actions would have severe consequences.

When she recounted the events to Kira and Lacus a few days later, her amber eyes dull and uninspired as they stared into the rich blend of tea that Lacus had shoved into her hands, the two others had kept a collective silence as they were unsure as how to react or even console Cagalli. Her brother finally broke the silence as he rose from his chair and wrapped his sister into his arms as she broke down sobbing and shaking horribly, Lacus soon joining them as Cagalli's body wracked and choked against the emotions that she had allowed to dam up before they broke out. The couple had told her that they would try to support her as best as the could in the attempts to find some inkling of hope that would restore her freedom or at least destabilize Yuna's claim, but they had been unsuccessful. Lacus' connections were working extensively to investigate and Kira knew quite a few people that disapproved of the upsetting engagement that were combing through all the legislation from the last few hundred years to try and find some legal loophole.

Cagalli grunted as she moved the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Development's request aside and she reached for another document to parse while waiting for the clock to draw to a quarter past six. A burst of energy ran through her body as she found a renewed motive to finish her work efficiently with the mere thought of being able to see her brother and unwind from the last few weeks within his empathetic company.

* * *

"You're late," Cagalli pointed out as she opened the door to her brother's car and slipped inside the warm confines of the vehicle. Kira gave her a sheepish look as he waited for her to fasten her seatbelt over her body before pulling away from the front of the Ministry of the Interior. Guiding the sleek vehicle down a side road, he apologized as he tapped his fingers against the steering wheel, the radio a mere background presence that gave them additional company.

"We were running into some snags trying to make the program adhere to the new protocols released by the Ministry of Science," Kira offered by means of explanation. "We had to undo about four months of work for a competition that we have in three weeks. Three weeks! How's that for lousy timing?" Cagalli nodded stiffly as she rolled her shoulder and reached down to peel off the heels that Yuna had insisted she wear around the presence of government workers. She had protested but he had silenced her and reminded her that the image that they had to project needed to ensure that professionalism wept from their existence—even down to their shoes. Cagalli rebuked that she would not be of much use if her feet were destroyed but Yuna had shut down her protesting with a heavy threat that he would make sure that heels would be the least of her problems lest she wished to engage more with the Congress.

"How could they just rewrite that entire law in two weeks?" Kira asked as he glanced at the blonde who was slumped unhappily in the seat at the mention of the controversial law that had been ratified and updated by the pro-Seiran Congress. "That was something that was around since we were kids and it worked just fine. I know they're worried about the coexistence aspect but I think they're worrying about the wrong interpretation of it."

"I wasn't on that committee and I didn't have any staff on it either," Cagalli muttered as Kira hooked a sharp right and shifted the car into a lower gear as they crested onto a busy avenue. "All I know is that they're getting nervous with so many robots advancing beyond what we thought would be limits that we could control. There are rumbles from other countries that many robots are replacing top professionals in the medical field as well as in the military. I imagine that Yuna's cabinet is worried about them getting too much power here and putting his own little make-believe world in even more jeopardy. He wants to put a ban on them.

"On the other hand, yes, I know it's surprising that the Minister of the Interior was not invited considering it's a domestic issue, or has the potential to be one, anyway," She continued as she picked at a loose flap of skin around her thumb. "Yuna has made it very clear from day one that robots are not supposed to form an integral part of our country's demographics. There have been mass shut-downs of certain groups of robots that were working in things such as military surveillance because he's a paranoid twit who's incapable of looking beyond the tip of his nose. He trusts the old croons that gave him the power to do this as opposed to the experts who actually know what they're talking about."

"Fancy that," Kira remarked dryly at the mention of the lavender haired leader. "Please tell him he's making things more difficult for the rest of us who actually work in that field and try to keep the interest and ideas flowing. The kids have great ideas—really makes me wonder sometimes how we overlook these things as adults." Cagalli snorted once again as she ceased picking at her nails and stared down at her naked and bandaged feet that were covered in blisters and angry red welts from the heels. No matter what she did, she could not get them to heal properly and there was always significant superficial damage littered across her feet.

"Like he'll even listen to me," She murmured in a low voice as they pulled up to a traffic light. Kira shifted the car into neutral as he turned in his seat to gaze at his sister with a baffled look. She was, in her younger days, often compared to a lioness for her bright mane of golden hair as well as her fiery personality that seemed to fill an entire room despite her mere stature. Her confidence since being engaged to the Seiran heir, had diminished to devastating levels and that lioness had lost her mighty roar as it seemed she was only able to mewl from time to time but was seemingly afraid. Kira had never dared to question the relationship that she maintained with the lavender haired leader but he had always guarded a sneaking suspicion that there were terrible things happening behind closed doors that Cagalli refused to speak about. Kira chalked it up to her either being threatened to keep silent or that she had taken an oath of silence to protect him and Lacus from the Seiran's wrath.

"Cagalli, you didn't ask me out to dinner merely to catch up… did you?" She glanced at him with a heated look to her amber eyes that seemed to have lost their vibrant hue and Kira felt his heart beat against his chest at the realization that Cagalli had seen right through his attempt pry information from her.

"Don't be silly Kira," She snapped as she lowered her gaze away from him and looked back down at her swollen feet. "We haven't seen each other in a long time—we're both busy, you know? Why wouldn't I want to see you?" Her lips were drawn into a tense line on her face and he could see that his sister was trying to regulate her emotions as he studied her with a critical eye. Her blazer and blouse covered her upper body and arms significantly and he could not see anything that would hint of any bruising or marring of her alabaster skin. Her legs were encased in smart fitting pants and she was not donning any make-up—as was her style—so Kira's assessment was rendered useless.

"You know you can come stay with Lacus and me if you ever want to get away from the house for a few days," He said cautiously but Cagalli did not even react to his words as she steeled her expression and smiled pleasantly at him with a deft nod of her head. "Even you need to rest, you know."

"Yes, yes, I know," She said with a wave of her hand. "I just don't want to bother you two—plus, it's hard to get the Ministry from your house. The commute is already miserable enough, you know!" She laughed nervously and Kira gave her a tentative smile that did not touch his eyes. He knew that his sister was acting on a defence mechanism—refusing help with what seemed to be a plausible excuse—and that flamed the suspicions that he had been nurturing within his mind with regards to the Seiran and his conduct with his sister. Kira shifted the car back into gear as the light changed and they cruised along until they reached a restaurant that they had been going to for years prior to losing their family. As Cagalli reached for the heels, Kira stopped her as he reached into the backseat of the car and fished out a pair of comfortable flats that Lacus left there and had never bothered to remove. Cagalli flashed him a thankful look as she slipped her feet into the comfortable flats and exited the car.

* * *

Kira had dropped her off at their old family home, one that he had abandoned to pursue a life outside the political arena, and he waved her goodbye and forced her to promise to come see them within the following weeks. Cagalli laughed and nodded, thanking her brother for the dinner date as she tossed Lacus' shoes back into the car and closed the door and slung the heels over her shoulder as she buzzed herself through the first gate before slowly plodding across the tastefully manicured garden and lawn that her father had planted lovingly for their mother. Her bare feet relished the cool comfort of the grass between her toes as she ghosted over the garden towards the front door.

As she approached the quaint wrap around veranda, the front door of the house opened quietly as she drew within the last remaining meters. Her expression softened as she saw the familiar face framed with hair of a lovely navy blue colour peer out into the night. The door opened a bit more at the recognition of the resident of the house he was tasked with managing and his full height occupied the doorway as he patiently waited for Cagalli to close the distance. He was dressed in a simple white button up shirt and khaki slacks—a symbol of second class citizens Yuna had imposed upon him—yet his unaging face and bright green eyes watched her with an impartial calmness that seemed unique only to him.

"Hello, Athrun," Cagalli greeted in a whisper to avoid attracting Yuna's attention. "Have you been waiting for me to come back?" Athrun did not answer her as he stepped to the side to allow Cagalli to pass through the doorway to their home. The house was dark except for a night light that was left in the main hall and she assumed that Yuna was either already asleep or had not returned from wherever he may have been. It was not atypical of him to arrive at all hours of the night, many times reeking of booze or cigar smoke, and those were the nights that Cagalli locked her door and slipped her handgun under her pillow. She would never intentionally want to shoot the Seiran heir but she always had zero confidence with him in such an intoxicated state that made her already frazzled nerves go haywire.

"Has Yuna come back?" She whispered erratically as she waited for Athrun to shut the front door. The quiet male shook his head as he slowly closed the front door and locked it. He then rested his hand on the security panel next to the door and activated the alarms and defence system that ran the perimeter of her home. Cagalli watched him silently as Athrun's much taller frame inspected the panel carefully before drawing away from it and moving towards Cagalli. Satisfied that the house was properly secured, he was now able to focus his attention on the house's resident with the golden hair.

"Why did you put the alarm if Yuna isn't back yet?" Cagalli inquired as Athrun drew up next to her protectively and hovered comfortably next to the blonde as though awaiting further instructions. He trained his emerald gaze on her as he considered her question and how to best address it without overstepping his boundaries. With a shrug, he opted to not vocalize his motives as he gently took the blonde by the shoulder and guided her steadily towards the living room where a cup of warm tea was waiting for her. Mindful that her feet were sore and raw, he herded her with the delicacy of a fragile glass doll and she allowed the tall robot to task himself with making sure that she did not damage her feet even more. Cagalli sat down on the sofa quietly as she winced at a nasty blister catching on the carpet, and she hissed through her teeth as the friction of the carpet irritated the inflamed skin.

"Stupid heels," She grumbled as Athrun looked at her indifferently before reaching out and prying the heels from her grasp and vanishing across the hall to deposit them in a closet. It was not the first time he had witnessed Cagalli stalking up to the house in her bare feet—an odd behaviour in general—but he understood when he saw how raw her feet had been left by the shoes. He had programmed into his memory the first day that Cagalli had worn heels and had tottered around awkwardly as she tried to gain her balance in the absurd shoes. Athrun had been standing at the top of staircase waiting for her to go downstairs and he had rushed to catch her when she had snagged her foot on one of the ornate carpets her father had received as a gift. Catching her in his arms and steadying her, Athrun had silently helped her down the stairs as he kept a sharp eye out for his ward.

"I had dinner with Kira," Cagalli said to Athrun absently as he returned to stand behind her passively, his arms folded behind his back as he stood guard over the woman. "He asked about you, you know? He hasn't seen you for a few months. Kira wants to know if you need some sort of tune-up but I told him that he wasn't allowed to program you all willy-nilly." Athrun raised an eyebrow but still refused to say anything as he watched as Cagalli wrapped her hands around the cup of tea and took a thoughtful sip of the brew that he had prepared.

"It's nice not having Yuna breathing down my neck for once, too—he hates when I see Kira," Cagalli mused aloud as she set the tea cup down and propped her sore feet up on the ottoman that was placed in front of the sofa. She sunk into the cushions and tilted her head up so that she was staring into the neutral emerald gaze that was looking down on her with a mechanical gentleness that she had never seen in any other robot she'd had contact with. The robot's face had never aged in the nearly decade and a half that he had formed a part of the household and yet she always felt giddy upon seeing him when she returned home from school, university, or now the Ministry. He would patiently await her return and ensure that his charge was well looked after on the last wishes of the late leader before his passing.

Athrun had been a constant in her life since she could remember given that he was one of the first robots allowed in the country under her father's new policies. He was brought on to ensure that the household was running smoothly as well as served as a defence mechanism to protect the family from any attempts on their lives. Despite her father having a high approval rating, there was always a dark threat lingering in the darkness and he wanted to ensure that the children and his wife were safe when he was unable to be present. Athrun had proved to be a reliable robot who tolerated his young children and his hen-like wife who had roped the robot into helping her with the most absurd of tasks. Athrun had never once expressed any displeasure towards his work and seemed to quite attached to the children as he would swing or playfight with Cagalli or allow Kira to practice programming bizarre software on his mainframe.

There had been moments when Cagalli had sought comfort from the stoic robot and he had obliged, allowing her to curl up with him or he would simply hold her and allow her to discharge her emotions onto him as he tried to best understand how to remedy the situation. He himself was not necessarily programmed how to alleviate the pain that his young charge was feeling but he had observed in passing how their mother would cradle her children and allow them to cry. He would tangle his fingers in her golden locks and stroke her head carefully, the seemingly human interaction an almost taboo for a robot of his calibre. He was simply charged with watching over the household and ensuring their safety: yet Athrun had come to analyze that not all threats were visible and that emotional threats were just, if not, as dangerous as tangible ones.

Athrun's nearly silent presence was of great comfort to Cagalli because over the years that formed a significantly dark period of her life after losing her father, her unwillingness to marry the lavender haired idiot who occupied a space in a household where he was not welcomed, and her position in a government that was not one that represented her family's legacy—with so many changes in a relatively short period of time, she had often locked herself away from the public's eye, and even her brother, and had taken to expressing her disgust with herself and how her life was spiralling out of control without a way of hitting the brakes to step back and look at this objectively. The blue haired robot had been present in each pivotal change and had refused to budge from her side—many times stationing himself outside her bedroom door to ensure that she was not acting irrationally. He had held her many times, the one-child a now fully grown woman, and he had seen the many dimensions of her personality as he distantly watched her develop into the very person that she did not wish to be.

"It's so different now," Cagalli murmured as she took another sip of tea. "I think if Father were still alive, Yuna would have never been able to get away with half the things he has done." She gave a dark chuckle as her dull amber eyes closed in the silence of the living room. Athrun was still unmoving but he was listening to her attentively as he clung to her words and found himself in agreement with such a simple statement that ventured beyond the more obvious nuances of life. He had watched the golden haired girl turned into the golden haired woman and had watched how her passionate spirit had simmered to something that was horribly repressed and locked away: it was not the spirited woman that he had calculated lovingly that she would turn into but rather a shell of what he had predicted she would have become. The robot found himself at odds with such intimate thoughts but he had pushed them to the back of his memory as they were highly inappropriate considering that the co-habitation between humans and robots was skating on thin ice under the rule of the very lavender man that slept down the hall from Cagalli.

"Athrun?" He looked down at her again and found her looking at him with half lidded eyes that were exhausted but still had a flicker of affection for the sturdy robot that had stood by her side for so many years. Cagalli had been tempted to ask if Athrun remained by her side out of a sense of duty and obligation or if it had been of his own free will but she decided that she was quite content with living in ignorance with regards to the answer. Everything that had been taken from her—her father, her mother, her brother's moving away from the family home, Yuna's intrusion, her freedom—of everything that had been taken from her, she feared that the comforting presence of Athrun would also disappear and she knew that she would break under losing such an integral figure in her life: regardless of him not being a breathing human, she had never seen him as anything less but rather a wonderfully complex, thoughtful, and perplexing existence that always seemed to know best when it came to her.

" You're awfully quiet tonight," Cagalli said with another chuckle that was much lighter as a gentle smile touched her face and reached her eyes. "I mean, you're quiet in general, but you're rather quiet tonight." He let his lips flicker into a half smile at her attempt of humour before he shook his head and drew away from her, vanishing down the hall momentarily into the kitchen. Cagalli listened carefully to his movements as he bustled around the kitchen before he returned back to the living room with a plate of her favourite biscuits carefully arranged in a methodical stack on the plate. Cagalli gave him a puzzled look that melted away into another smile that she reserved for him as she patted the sofa and invited him to sit down next to her. Athrun had been scolded by Yuna various times for being physically close to the blonde but Cagalli had rebuked and told him leave Athrun alone given that he was not under Yuna's control and was under zero obligation to listen to him.

Cagalli shifted on the sofa as she moved her legs out of the way to make space for the towering form of Athrun and she nodded as he settled in next to her as they had done millions of times before. He gently set the plate of biscuits onto the table and leaned back into the sofa with Cagalli, imitating her posture as he found a comfortable position. They were content in their comfortable silence, Athrun's green eyes alert in the darkness as his lovely human charge slowly dozed off next to him, her head listing from side to side occasionally as she tried to fight off the gentle tendrils of sleep that crept into her darkening vision.

"Sleep: it's late and you must rise early tomorrow," Athrun finally vocalized, his voice soft and gentle as Cagalli knew it to be since her childhood. Athrun opted to remain silent and give off the air of being unable to communicate with humans but Cagalli knew that he was perfectly enabled to do so and she could recall fondly the first time he had ever spoken to her with words as opposed to his actions. It was mere days after her mother's funeral and she had been locked up in her room and refused to attend to even Kira's pleas of her to eat and to come outside of her room to have some fresh air. Cagalli had ignored him and had bundled herself into the blankets that she had ripped from her mother's bed, wrapping herself up within their comforting embrace as she swaddled herself into them and refused to budge from her bed.

Athrun had managed to sneak into her room with his inhuman grace, unbeknown to Kira who had temporarily surrendered to his sister's stubborn streak and had relegated himself to the kitchen, and he remained at the doorway as he gazed down on the figure that was curled into a tight ball that seemed to repel the outside world from reaching whatever internal storm she was battling. He silently moved across the room and sank onto the edge of the bed, his gentle hand resting on her back as he tried to comprehend what would be the most logical way to address the child's apparent cloudy haze fuelled by grief. His green eyes were soft but firm as he began to unwrap the blankets from her form and he finally encountered the treasure that was buried within them.

Her eyes were muddled and her face was a splotchy red colour that he had never seen her sport before in their time together. Her body was trembling from the harsh gasps of air that she was drawing into her delicate lungs and her hands were furling and unfurling uncontrollably. Her hair was mussed and knotted and her nightgown was the same one she had been wearing for more than three days. Athrun found himself horrified by her appearance but he looked down her figure and tried to comprehend how to best help the tiny human that loved to play with him and spend as many waking hours as she could within his shadow. At first he had been mildly annoyed by her constant badgering but it was only when she began to show him a simple childlike compassion and innocent empathy that he realized that the tiny Cagalli did not see him as a robot but rather as an extension of her family.

Upon seeing such a happy and bubbly character reduced to such a disarming state of shock and grief, Athrun felt something within his cold mechanical body come to life at the realization that it was his moment to demonstrate that same indifference to their fundamental differences: he did not see her as a human, but rather as an addition to his artificial life that brought him a sense of serenity as they bumbled around the family garden or as he sat with her and listened to her try to read him a story about princesses and dragons, her mispronouncing of word oddly endearing to the stoic robot. It was only in that moment when he saw that the fragility of a human with dynamic emotions and the tendency to not be able to gauge their emotional output that he was able to understand that Cagalli's existence was precious to him and he did not wish to see her fall to such extremes once again. The configuration of his base program kicked to life as he himself began to re-write the programs and archive them in a folder that was emblazoned with her name.

" _It will be alright,_ " He had said in a voice that he was shocked to hear for the first time as well. Cagalli froze at the sound of what she had assumed to be someone incapable of speaking and her eyes had widened at the realization that it was Athrun that spoke to her in such a soothing and gentle tone that carried no malice. " _Rest. I will stay with you for as long as you need me, but, please—rest_." She had resisted at first as she tried to burrow herself back within the blankets but he had refused to allow her to close herself away from him and he had taken to cradling her tiny body between strong protective arms and lulling her to sleep. She had relented and allowed him to tuck her into her bed properly, her eyes red-rimmed but her breathing regular as he sat at the foot of her bed protectively, watching over her with a careful eye that seemed to have lost a sliver of distance that day.

"Just a bit longer, please," Cagalli seemed to beg him as she leaned into the sturdy form of the robot that was designed to imitate human flesh but still held a coldness that served as a constant reminder that he was anything but a human being. "I like it when things are quiet—it gives me time to think." Her head tucked neatly against his shoulder and she curled her legs onto the sofa as she folded her hands on her lap, abandoning the lovely tea sweets that he had thoughtfully fetched her. Athrun was still and unmoving as he knew that if the fool called Yuna saw them in such a compromising position, there would be another argument and he did not wish to subject Cagalli to another confrontation with the controlling lavender-haired male that had intruded on the sanctuary that he worked hard to maintain for the blonde.

"Don't worry about Yuna, Athrun," She said lightly around a hearty yawn as she snuggled closer to the robot who permitted himself to raise an arm and drape it over her shoulders protectively as they had done in a lovely companion-like innocent hundreds of times before. "He's a moron who lives off prejudices and ignorance." She gave him a weak and tepid smile that made the green eyed robot freeze momentarily as he saw another flame of something rise up in her golden orbs before it was extinguished quickly. He hated the woman that she had turned into and he had hoped that Cagalli's willpower would have been enough to fend off the angry politician's attacks but it had left her meek and in needing of protection more now than before when she was a clumsy child.

Cagalli slumped against him further and Athrun blinked momentarily as he realized that she had drifted off to sleep and did not seem likely to stir. He looked down at her slumbering form, her arms sprawled out haphazardly as a light snore spilled from her lips. He was painfully aware of the vulnerability of such a delicate human that he had taken under his charge and it was something that had softened what was supposed to be an external armour of indifference and impartialness. Robots were prohibited from having emotional connections with their human counterparts and there were severe consequences that would be paid by both parties if discovered and this alone prompted Athrun to try and mask his underlying affections for the human that was currently snoozing against him. He knew that his emotions and sentimental understandings and wanting to understand more were taboo yet he, too, found himself pushing those various boundaries if it gave him the chance to be in her presence and watch over her like the faithful guardian that he had been programmed to be. He knew that these sensations already superseded his duties and were a foreign concept to most of his kind as he wished to cocoon her in another safe haven where no one would be able to reach them and take her away from him or make her suffer anymore than she already had.

Athrun sighed slightly as he gently untangled Cagalli from his body as he spread her out on the sofa gently to not wake her and reached for the blanket that was folded neatly behind them. He draped it over her form and tucked her in carefully, he himself not daring to touch her more than necessary in the attempts to fight back the urge to flee the world and take her with him. He had watched he grow for over fourteen years and he was enamoured with his human charge and swore to always wait for her by the door for her to return to their private sanctuary that was threatening to crumble now that the Seiran had taken residency there.

He withdrew from the living room, casting her another glance before he returned to his own private room and latched the charging cable to his intake slot on his inner wrist, the surge of electricity feeding his body precious virtual nutrition as he felt his eyes close and his world darken, Cagalli's breathing down the hall accompanying him as he fell into digital slumber.

* * *

(A/N): This is a story that I have been mulling over for a while. Music is often a great muse to get a story started but one that can also provide continunity, too. This entire story should not be longer than six or eight chapters (depending on how it's paced), but it is inspired by a micro-album created by Argentinean singer Leandro Lacerna called '2036'. The premise of the ten minute album is the following: a robot programmed for household chores has been discovered to have broken the protocol surrounding the co-habitation of humans and robots, the cause originating in an OS error. It creates a very strong narrative and Lacerna's music is fascinating. I will be working on a translation of the album and will link it in my bio. For now, I recommend listening to the microalbum available on Youtube. :D

In part, this story is also inspired by Donna Haraway's 'A Cyborg Manifesto', which is rooted in posthumanist feminism. However, the idea is mostly taken from the introduction that Haraway leaves as a framework based on the idea that 20th Century machines blur the lines between natural and artificial. They are not humans, they are not animals, and they are not machines. They are a mixture of the three and they are the type of entity that cannot recognize the Garden of Eden.

As usual, I do not own the characters or the sources of inspiration. Don't forget to read and review! :)


	2. Chapter 2

Protocol

Stage II:

"They calm your rage with the protocol,

and that's the joke at the end of the day."

* * *

"I hear that the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Development has requested much more police presence for their workers," Yuna commented as he nursed the hot coffee that seemed to scald his tongue. His narrow eyes trailed over to the figure of Athrun who had prepared the coffee and deposited it harshly in front of him before turning his attention to Cagalli and serving her, her own coffee that was gently set down on the table and doused with milk to take some of the heat off for her. Cagalli smiled brightly at the blue haired robot who nodded and returned to the kitchen counter and busied himself with looking at the security systems. Yuna had stumbled into the house last night and had stepped on one of the sensors outside, tripping the alarms and awakening Cagalli from the sofa as she peered out the window and saw her fiancé's drunken form splayed out on the freshly watered grass.

She then remembered that the grass was normally watered around noon and had stifled a giggle at the thought of Athrun having programmed the sprinkles to catch Yuna when he returned in the wee hours of the morning. The robot had ignored her knowing look as he continued to study the security system's central controls to inspect the feed from outside to the inside of the house. Cagalli looked away from her long time robot friend and back at Yuna with a much less pleased look.

"Yes, well, considering that the committee on the National Statute of Human Rights and Robot Relations was making decisions like this without thinking about the consequences, it's no wonder they're coming to the Ministry of the Interior with that request," Cagalli said blandly as she stared into the murky depths of the coffee. She knew that Athrun was tuned into their conversation but left no indication of it to the politician who was sitting across from her as he stared at his blonde fiancée. "And considering that we had no idea that these decisions were being made, we were not given enough time to allocate police in a timely matter. It's poor logistics."

"Cagalli, you know you do not have to be sitting on that committee, we want to you be working more with the Ministry of Education to fixing the failing public schools as opposed to worrying about robots and their movements in the country," Yuna said firmly as he gave her a skeptical look. "We need you to be looking at the infrastructure issues—they're the most pressing. The Northeast is about to collapse because their schools are in such bad shape."

"I know," Cagalli muttered as she looked up at the lavender haired leader who was raking his eyes over her form as though inspecting her like another military product. "However, Education is tied with the constraints on the budget. We can't just procure billions of dollars of investment from the air: we need it to be redistributed from things like Defence—"

"— _Absolutely not_ ," Yuna cut in harshly. "Not with how this world is going to hell in a hand basket. Any investment made in the military budget is made in good faith to protect our interests."

"Then I can't do much with Education if I don't have the money to allocate to the failing infrastructure, can I?" Cagalli asked meekly as she gave him a look that merely suggested that her hands were tied due to the lack of funding from the government. Yuna knew exactly what he was doing when his Congress passed the budget and slashed the budgets for the Interior and Education ministries and when she had tried to counter his budget, it was met with heavy criticism from her peers. Cagalli had fought him on every legal end but ended up throwing her hands up in defeat.

"I wouldn't worry about it too much, once we're married, you're going to be retired from the Ministry," Yuna said dismissively as he stirred his coffee and focused his gaze on her face. "I can't have my future spouse working in one of the Ministries. Your duty as First Lady will be enough to keep you occupied—my secretaries are already organizing a tour for you in the next few Summit Meetings. The timing has been absolutely fabulous, to be honest." Cagalli's spoon clattered to the table at Yuna's words and Athrun was unmoving as the two of them tried to digest the words that had just been uttered from the Seiran's mouth.

" _What?_ " She hissed violently through her teeth as she gaped at Yuna. "Since when was this a thing?"

"I decided that it would be better for you to take a less passive role in politics," Yuna said simply as though it were the most obviously statement in the world. "As a First Lady, you'll be an extension of our country's representation but you'll be more on the socializing and photo-op end of things. Pure publicity, you know? I've already been in talks with the Congress about your replacement, Cagalli. We have a fine selection to choose from: cream of the crop." Cagalli's mouth was agape as she glared at Yuna with a mix of trepidation and flickers of rage. Her eyes were wide as she tried to summon the words she wanted to let spill forward but she snapped her jaw close.

"Well, I _don't_ agree with that," She settled for as she counted backwards from ten in her mind. "That sort of decision cannot be made with my permission, Yuna. What the _hell_ do you think you're doing?"

"It's in your best interests, Cagalli, believe me when I say that I do worry about you worrying in the Ministry," Yuna countered with a heavy shrug as he narrowed his eyes at her. "You've always been close to your father's political ideology but this world has no room for pacifism and peace. Why do you think I've never allowed you to work in any sort of diplomatic environment? We need to be flexing our muscles on the world stage at this point because the world is taking a turn for the worse. There are too many conflicts happening and sooner or later we are going to be involved. I cannot have your father's politics interfering in our country's trajectory. We've always been seen as weak in global affairs but we're changing that."

"We were seen as a bastion of democracy and diplomacy that helped mediate some of the greatest conflicts!" Cagalli exclaimed as she pushed herself to her feet, her coffee sloshing on the table and staining the newspapers. Athrun's back was still turned to them but he was intently listening to their movements to determine if this was going to escalate even further. "All _you've_ done, Yuna, is turn the country upside down and put idiots in power! You've destroyed our integrity, that's what _you've_ gone and done!" Her voice was exasperated as it shifted between frustration and anger: a flash of Cagalli's lioness roared to life as she felt her father's legacy crumbling around her into thousands of unsalvageable pieces and she slammed her hands on the table. She knew that Yuna's temper was a danger to wrangle with but she herself was willing to take the risk and set her foot down for the sake of the country.

"Is _that_ what you think?" He growled. "Do you think I've been acting on whims?"

"I do," Cagalli replied as she watched him warily as he rose to his feet and braced himself against the table. She could smell the faint traces of imported spirits on his breath and she winced inwardly as she was unsure if she was contending with a still inebriated Yuna or a moronic but rational one. Her golden eyes were alight with something akin to rage as she watched him slowly round the table, his hands grasping at the wooden edge as he stumbled towards her.

"Just remember who is in charge of this country, Cagalli," Yuna rasped as he slowly approached her like a lion approaches its pray. His eyes were hazy as he glowered at her from beneath messy bangs and Cagalli could pick out the smeared red lipstick marks that dotted his neck and she swore under her breath. "Just remember who is running this fucking show—because it isn't _you._ " He was a mere two meters away from her and she felt herself take a tentative step backwards as she tried to widen the distance between them. Watching him with a haggard look, she watched as he took another step forward and lifted his hand, reaching for her.

"I'm the one that makes the decisions and if I'm taking you out of your playtime as the Minister of the Interior, I'll damned do so," He growled again as he nearly fell but regained his balance as he closed the distance between them. His left hand seized her by the front of her shirt as he hauled her towards her and brought her face to face with him. "You're supposed to be the pretty little fiancée who plays the part—you know what _will_ happen otherwise. You're nothing but political power for me, Cagalli." He grimaced uglily as he considered her face and how her eyes registered a tinge of fear to their golden colour. He grunted brutally as he dragged her closer, not seeming to care if he bruised her collarbone, and planted his lips firmly over hers. He roughly shoved his leg between her thighs, pushing against the most sensitive area of her body, and she cried out in protest at the movement but Yuna ignored it blissfully as he moved his knee against the area, knowing it would set off a reaction.

Cagalli felt her blood run ice cold as she felt his lips pressing against hers viciously and erratically, his tongue emerging from its moist cavern of an alcohol laced mouth as he pushed through her lips, running his tongue through her mouth. She whimpered in response which only spurred on the lavender haired man as he buried his tongue further within her mouth, carelessly moving against her as he roughly pawed at her thighs. Cagalli tried to shove against him and she nearly melted in agony as she caught Athrun watching the disgusting display with his look of impassive neutrality before he dropped the glass coffee pot on the floor, the hot liquid spilling everywhere as it landed on Yuna's leg, seeping through the thin silk of his pants. Fragments of glass pirouetted through the air as they settled around the Seiran's bare feet and the still drunk man stepped on one particularly nasty shard. The man yelped in pain as he ripped himself away from Cagalli and turned to see that Athrun had already busied himself with cleaning the glass from the floor, giving Cagalli a moment to slide through the porch door and into the garden.

She pressed herself against the trellis of flowers that her father had planted many years ago and that Athrun had tended to on a fairly consistent basis and she clutched her hands to her chest as she tried to breathe normally. Her lips were bruised and her entire being felt violated as the throbbing pain between her legs seemed to amplify as she tried to make her world stop spinning. Her back was to the kitchen but she could hear Yuna shouting at Athrun who was, comically, much taller and more imposing when he was on defence-mode. She knew that Athrun would be untouched by Yuna because he would not allow himself to be touched by the man, but she was also acutely aware that Yuna would probably try to come after her again knowing that Athrun would react to protect her. It was a cruel trap that Yuna had worked them into: if Cagalli was hurt by her fiancé, Athrun would come to her aid but if he hurt Yuna, Athrun would face the legal consequences of National Statue of Human Rights and Robot Relations and probably be destroyed without her being able to defend him.

Cagalli knew that if Athrun was destroyed, she would have that stained on her conscious for the rest of her days and would never forgive Yuna or herself for allowing her companion to be cornered into the unthinkable.

 _I can't win,_ she thought as she sank to her haunches and cradled her body to herself, feeling significantly dirty and hopeless as the colour drained from her already muted world.

* * *

"Good morning, Minister," Miriallia greeted as she saluted Cagalli who gave her a tempered smile before accepting the files from her top secretary and friend. The brunette gave Cagalli a sympathetic look as she realized that Cagalli looked even more ghastly than normal after having breakfast with their Primer Minister and she reached out to touch Cagalli's shoulder in a sisterly way. "Shit morning, right?"

"You have no idea," Cagalli muttered as she rubbed her temples together. She had spent thirty minutes in the garden trying to hide from Yuna and had only emerged when Athrun had come outside to find her, silently extending his hand to help her to her feet and guiding her quietly back to their house as she mutely stared at the robot before calling for a government car. Athrun stayed close to her that morning, watching her movements with a critical eye without saying a word, and had finally watched as she slipped out the front door and into the backseat of a black government car. When she looked back at the front door, he was standing there with an unreadable expression on his face and she felt her heart break into thousands of pieces as she realized that it was going to be sooner rather than later that Yuna tried to separate them by any means necessary.

"Want to talk about it?"

"No, not really," Cagalli replied as she gave Miriallia a tired look. "I do, but I don't know where to start—there's a lot of information to work through and it's just… too much. Even my brain doesn't know how to process things properly anymore."

"Does it have to do with Yuna?"

"In part."

"He doesn't want you to be a Minister anymore, right?" Cagalli's eyes snapped fully open as she turned to stare at her secretary who was giving her a sheepish look as she flushed significantly. "There were some secretaries that work with Yuna that caught wind of it…and you know how these things spread, Cagalli. Something about retiring you and putting in some old crotch who doesn't give a shit about the job and is only in it for the title." She covered her mouth with her hand as she gave Cagalli a thoughtful expression before asking, "Did Yuna not tell you?"

"This morning he did, still drunk from whatever he did last night," Cagalli answered in a quiet tone of voice as she shuffled some papers around on her desk and clicking her computer on. "He also told me that he's only marrying me for political power—which, honestly, makes sense. Comes home with love bites and lipstick stains, so it's fairly obvious he's not in love with me." Miriallia nodded at Cagalli's seeming resignation about the theme and watched as her superior tapped in her password to the computer.

"It's not the first time he's come home like that," She ventured to guess.

"Bingo," Cagalli replied tersely. "He's a mean drunk."

"Has he ever…?"

"Ever…?" Miriallia gave off the impression that she was too nervous to ask what she really wanted to know but she knew that Cagalli would never give her the straight forward answer that she was looking for. "Did he ever what?"

"Has he ever touched you?" Cagalli's stare hardened as she stiffened her shoulders and her entire aura dropped into an icy state that made even her secretary uncomfortable. The lack of Cagalli's response was enough for Miriallia to confirm what she wanted to know without Cagalli having to say anything and she felt her heart break for the Minister seated before her. She knew that Cagalli was a fairly private individual and disliked to burden others with her own personal dramas but she was privy to the fact that Cagalli did not stand for abuse at any level of society: so why was she allowing herself to be reduced to nothing and harmed by the Seiran heir? The brunette shook her head as she rounded Cagalli's desk and crouched down next to her, looking her deep in the eye as she mustered the courage to utter the words that Cagalli needed to hear.

"Cagalli—hiding this is not going to solve anything, why don't you report him? You're in charge of the national police as the damned Minister of the Interior, do something!" Miriallia's reasoning was sound and just to Cagalli's ears but the shred of guilt of knowing that all actions had repercussions weighed heavily against her heart. "I know you've had a rough couple of years and I know you hate what Yuna's done to your father's legacy, but Cagalli, christ, I never thought it was this bad." Her friend's voice trailed off as she felt Cagalli tremble and she knew that this had been something occurring for more time than she had previously thought.

"These heels, Yuna makes me wear them," Cagalli murmured in a low voice. Miriallia's eyes dropped to the Minister's feet and took in the high stilettos that looked painful to wear. "When I refused, he hit me over the back—first with a heel, then with his fist. He told me that my insolence would be my downfall. To him, the image we project is more important—"

"—Even down to our tippy toes," Miriallia finished Cagalli's sentence with a grimace.

"Do you remember when all the Ministers were gathered together for the last meeting to discuss the budget requirements and restrictions?" Miriallia nodded, unsure if she liked where this end of the conversation was going but she was determined to see it through to the end. "That very morning we had a fight in the kitchen—I had told him I thought it was ridiculous for him to allocate more than thirty percent of the GDP towards defence spending and he, well, we just wouldn't stop shouting at each other. He ended up shoving me in the chest and bruising my collarbone."

"That's why you were wearing that sweater in late spring," Miriallia said as her jaw dropped open as to why she had never questioned why her boss was wearing such a heavy garment. Cagalli had waved her off when Miriallia had inquired if she was hot and wanted a lighter jacket, saying that she was feeling a bit feverish that day but did not want to miss the meeting. "But… Cagalli… where has Athrun been in all this? Your father left him to ensure that you were safe, right?"

"Athrun?" Cagalli repeated the name of the dear robot that was surely going about his daily routine of ensuring that the household was in order and things were running smoothly. Orchestrating the same activities he had been performing over the last sixteen years as he moved seamlessly thorough the house, guarding their residence. He would order the food for groceries, he would tend to the garden, he would revise the security system, and he would go about his day without ever leaving an indication that it was him behind the protection of their private home.

"I'm sure he wouldn't let you get beaten by that asshole," Miriallia said in a low voice as she gave Cagalli a begging look.

"No, no he wouldn't," Cagalli agreed as she drew her hands together and felt another throb of pain surge from between her legs from where Yuna had shoved his knee too roughly.

"So, why—?"

"—Because I ordered him not to do anything," Cagalli cut her off. "The moment he raises a hand against Yuna, it's game over for Athrun. He'll be decommissioned and destroyed. I can't lose him, Miriallia, not after I've lost everyone else." Cagalli's eyes were hazy and glossy as she tried to fend back the tears that threatened to stain her cheeks and a sad look painted her face as though tragedy itself raged within her. "I can't lose Athrun because of Yuna—Athrun does what he can to try and stop Yuna without ever touching him, but it might not work anymore. Yuna knows that when he touches me, it bothers Athrun."

" _Fuck,_ Cagalli," Miriallia whispered as she rose to her feet and slowly enveloped the once proud lioness into her arms and rested her chin on the crown of Cagalli's head. "I had no idea that this was happening…"

"I don't want people to know," Cagalli said meekly.

"Not even your brother?"

" _Especially_ not him," Cagalli retorted lightly as she leaned into her friend's warm embrace. "There's too many people who will be put in danger and, at the risk of sounding a bit martyr-like, until I find a better solution to this entire thing, I can't have other people suffering. As long as I have enough time to figure out a way to get Athrun away safely, then I'll make a move. But until then…" She sighed heavily as she found herself lacking the resolve to believe even her own words. She knew that Miriallia would never indulge these secrets into the public cesspool of the gossip mill and she also knew that most of her team despised Yuna and his governing style.

"Tell you what, go home tonight—I know that Yuna is out of town for meeting in the Southern regions about some military bases and will not be back for a few days," Miriallia said quietly as she listed off all of Yuna's locations and planned meetings. Being in close proximity with the other secretaries often led to gossip and internal talks about who was doing what, who was doing who, and what was being done about who, and she knew that most secretaries were relieved when the Prime Minister was away on state business. Cagalli herself had not known that Yuna would be absent for the next few days, she never bothered to ask out of her own personal disinterest.

"During those few days, take some time, think, gathering whatever you think is evidence to make a case," Miriallia continued. "I will go with you to the police and we will file a report: for fucks sake, Cagalli, you can't keep going on like this. I'm going to help you. You can stay with me; you and Athrun, there's plenty of room, and we can figure out what to do from there. And if it gets out to the public that Yuna Roma Seiran beats his fiancée, it's a bonus for you." Cagalli found herself staring at the brunette with a wide stare but she acquiesced as Miriallia began to jot down a few numbers on Cagalli's blotter, explaining that they were private phone numbers that she could call at any time and they were all registered to those who supported her father's legacy as well as her from a distance. Cagalli was unclear as to how Miriallia knew these people or why she was in contact with them, but she relented as she thanked her friend for the numbers and folded the paper, slipping it into the pocket of her jacket.

"Go home and talk to Athrun, start planning to leave the house because you know Yuna will not leave on his own accord," Miriallia urged as she gathered her paperwork to drop downstairs before the window closed. "We can talk later, okay? Think about what's good for you, Cagalli—I'm sure your father would be furious if he had seen the lioness of a daughter that he raised reduced to someone that she's not supposed to be. Don't tolerate this—no matter who you're trying to protect, okay?"

Cagalli was silent as she watched Miriallia slip through the door and closed it with a slam, the brunette's disbelief at the conversation and information she had just been given hanging in the air by a delicate thread. Cagalli herself slouched in her chair even more as she stared down at the heels on her feet before kicking them off, casting them to the back corner of her desk as she allowed her feet and her soul to breathe the fresh air that drifted through the window, her spirit slowly sparking to life as her brain began to formulate her exit from a situation that was forcing her to choose between a life of miserable politics and being alone or protecting herself as well as the one who has always watched over her in a comfortable silence that never strayed far.

To her, at this rate, the decision was an easy one to take. It would just take time.

And time was what she needed most.

* * *

(A/N): I've always found it difficult to write scenes detailing abuse but it's an unfortunate device required to have this story moving in the direction I need it to be going. As usual, read and review! :D I also don't own the characters, just enjoy their ruthless insertation into different worlds.


	3. Chapter 3

Protocol

Stage III: Rigor

"And now that you're not here, not even in the square—my home has become a prison;

Old tangos that never stop playing, banging my head against the wall."

* * *

As the government car pulled up to the house, Cagalli waved a brisk goodbye to the friendly young driver, a man called Shinn, who leaned over the driver's seat and called out to her to wait for a moment. Cagalli froze as she pivoted around on her barefeet, heels dangling from her fingers carelessly, as she ducked her head back into the car to see what the driver wanted.

"What's wrong, Shinn?"

"There's rumours of the Prime Minister having a grand old time with some woman down South," Shinn said roughly as his hands rested on the steering wheel, his red stare meeting her golden one with a look of contempt as though he had no qualms about divulging into their country's leader's business. "I know I'm just a driver, but, your fiancé is an absolute asshole—not only to us, but to you." Cagalli gave him a sad smile as she registered that Shinn was showing his support for her in a roundabout way that was still crude and akin to his style. She knew that her driver was someone that had seen what Yuna's legacy had done in his region of the country and the young Shinn had emigrated to the capital to seek better opportunities.

"Thank you, Shinn," She said softly as she moved to close the door. "I appreciate it. Really, I do."

"Hey, it's none of my business, but he's not well liked by a lot of us, you know," Shinn said with an absent minded shrug as he revved up the engine of the sleek black car and glanced back at Cagalli. "A lot of us miss your father's administration: things have gone to shit around the country. The Prime Minister wouldn't stand a chance against you in elections, you know." Cagalli's sad smile did not vanish from her face but she closed the door as she waved to the young driver who eased the car back down the laneway before turning onto the main road in the residential block. Cagalli sighed as she turned to the antique-like house and stared at the structure in all its glory before she opted to skirt the perimeter of the house, tossing the heels onto the veranda of the house.

She felt her aching feet cry out in relief at the moist grass that cushioned them gently as she glided over the field of emerald that was flanked by beds of immaculate flowers that had been there since she was a mere child. The rows of white, red, pink, and yellow flowers were comforting and eased her soul as she slowly picked her way towards the gate that opened to the back garden. She finagled the lock open and closed it behind her carelessly as it creaked in protest, her feet guiding her to the lovely wooden bench that had been commissioned by her father as a gift to her and Kira when they were ten years old. She and her twin had passed many long hours playing around the bench or reading there—usually accompanied by Athrun—and she found herself easing her tired body onto the cool wood as the pain from between her legs from Yuna's earlier actions reminded her of that morning.

The look on Athrun's face had been mostly impassive, that she knew when she had caught his eye whilst Yuna was violently kissing her, but she knew it was a hardened mask in case Yuna was to turn and see the robot approaching from behind. Athrun was very rarely in direct contact, by his own accord, with Yuna but Cagalli had a sneaking suspicion that the non-human entity despised the politician with every fibre of his being if his actions or lack of interaction with Yuna were to speak for him. He was curt and never once spoke in front of Yuna, leading her fiancé to believe that Athrun was either mute or a simple household robot tasked to make coffee and clean: but Cagalli knew that Athrun most likely loathed the fact that Yuna interrupted the flow of their house that had already suffered so many losses and completely flipped it on its head—much like he had done with the country. Athrun was a creature of habit by design but she knew that he had broken his habits for her and Kira when they were younger and would often ignore his supposed duties if Yuna was in the proximity.

She let her body loosen as her tired muscles and even more tired soul seemed to soak in the last remaining rays of sunlight as the sun began to dip behind the mountains that surrounded the capital city. She had watched the sunset many times alone, many times accompanied, but each one was a unique canvas that was impossible to replicate with paints or digital means. Each moment was a moment she felt it was a miracle to be alive and to be able to bask in the last moments of the day before the night crept over the city and cast it into a shadowy world that had become a menace over the last year years. Her entire life, as that of many humans, revolved around the necessity to seek out light to combat the darkness yet she felt that the darkness kept sliding into her vision more and more as the light seemed to disappear from her life. Cagalli could not fault anyone but herself but she still felt the well of emotions within her body churn anxiously as even she was unsure as to what was the correct path to take.

Her body was a small body that had withstood the tests of hardship and time and she knew that her battered frame was resistant as it had received heavy blows from someone who posed to be her promised one but away from the cameras assumed a different persona. Or perhaps, she mused, it was the person he truly was and the posing character of a doting fiancé was his false existence. She herself had a false existence as well, it was undeniable, but they blurred together to the point that it was a genuine version of herself: the timid woman who was allowing herself to be silenced, violated, sullied, and pushed around by an aggressive individual who wished to control her down to the most minute of details and the lioness that she had been growing into prior to her father's death.

If she had to pinpoint one emotion to describe herself it was that she felt dirtied by the Seiran's actions that morning. She had not been given a chance to shower and she had been yearning to scrub her skin all day. Yet something beckoned her to the garden and she felt satiated watching the sunset from the privacy of the garden that had been a gift to her mother from her father. Despite being long gone from the waking world of the humans, Cagalli swore she could note their presence lingering between the leaves of the trees or within the gentle breezes that caressed the flowers and her hair.

The sliding open of the porch door brought her back to earth as she turned to look over her shoulder and catch the lanky frame of Athrun stepping onto the cozy veranda before shutting the door behind him. He walked with such an un-human grace that Cagalli found it immensely fascinating as he slowly ambled towards the bench before assuming his normal stance behind her, always diligent and watching over his charge with the same comforting presence that she had always known.

"Yuna will not be returning tonight," Cagalli said slowly as she looked away from the blue haired robot and stared out at the sunset that painted the sky a million different colours that seemed to each contain a story unknown to her. Athrun remained silent as he simply nodded, his stance lightening at the mere thought that the wretched Seiran would not be setting foot in the sanctuary he had worked hard to craft for Cagalli. It would be a night of peaceful slumber and relaxation for the two that rarely had a moment alone without the Prime Minister lurking somewhere in the background. Athrun found his self restraint slipping more and more with each passing moment but he stayed put because it was the only time that Cagalli had ordered him to do so. She had begged him not to hurt the Seiran, to which he was confused and perplexed by her strange request, but he complied despite knowing that the lovely woman he was tasked to protect was being injured mere meters from him and he was unable to move. Defiance amongst his kind was a rare bird but even he wondered if disobedience would be enough to save Cagalli from the disgusting existence that was Yuna Roma Seiran.

"He will not be back for four days, actually," Cagalli continued in a low voice as her gaze softened as the sun continued to dip behind the mountains slowly. Athrun could remember the day that Yuna had decided to move into the family home that Cagalli's father had left to her. Kira had long since left the house, opting to live a quiet civilian life, and Athrun noticed the twin's presence's absence to have left a gaping hole in the profile of the household. Cagalli seemed equally dreary and a bit off put by being left alone in the house with the Seiran heir and Athrun had made it his objection to cheer her up: he had gone into the garden and arranged a small but thoughtful bouquet of flowers, prepared her favourite brew of coffee, and had ordered the ingredients to prepare the spicy meat with chilli sauce that she adored. When she had returned from the Ministry that evening, she had slipped out of the government car and saw that Athrun was waiting for her on the veranda with a somewhat more lively expression on his face. He had nudged her into the kitchen where she found a lovely spread of all her favourite sweets, foods, and flowers and had turned to the robot, thanking him profusely before touching his arm gently, her hand never leaving the very spot for a good ten minutes as she spoke to him animatedly.

Then her mood darkened for a moment, startling Athrun as he tried to understand what he had done incorrectly, but he realized that she was clinging to his jacket sleeve delicately, almost afraid to say what she wanted to say. He knew that the Prime Minister was to move in with them that afternoon—there were boxes of personal assets and belongings that had been delivered earlier that day—and he knew that Cagalli was nervous and doubtful with regards to the lavender haired politician whom she was bound to wed. She turned to her beloved robot with the eyes of someone who had seen a great tragedy, her mouth unmoving as she tried to find the correct way to express what she was going to ask. His memory flashed back to when he had coaxed her to cry her heart out after her mother passed and he recognized that look of fear that consumed her golden stare.

" _Athrun, there's one thing I must ask of you_ ," She whispered as she refused to cease her grip on his jacket sleeve. " _It's important… so, please. When Yuna comes here, whatever you do—whatever he does to me, please… don't hurt him. This is going to be the one time that I order you to do something, but believe me, it's better this way_." His eyes were unmoving as his emerald gaze locked onto her amber eyes, probing and trying to understand why she would order him to do such a thing when she knew that he was her assigned protector at the request of her father. Her eyes did not reveal a signal indication of her motives for demanding this of him but the grasp on his sleeve tightened.

" _Please, this is the one time I'm ordering something of you_ ," She repeated in a hazy voice that Athrun knew she was using to mask something that was obviously preoccupying her to her core. " _I know you watch over me and make sure that I'm still in one piece—_ " Cagalli gave a nervous laugh as she released her grip on the robot's jacket and took a step back. "— _But please, whatever it is that he does, don't touch him. I'm sure nothing will happen, but…"_

" _I understand,_ " He said simply and Cagalli blinked as his barely used voice filled her ears. She often forgot what his voice was like as it was used so little but it was something that warmed her immensely when he permitted her to hear it.

She could detect hesitation between the two words and she felt horrendously guilty for asking him to contradict his basic function on such an extreme level but she knew it would temporarily protect Athrun. Cagalli was no stranger to Yuna's policies and opinions on the co-habitation of humans and robots and he had thrown a fit a few days prior when Cagalli refused to decommission Athrun prior to the Seiran moving to her residence. He had cursed the wonderful existence that was Athrun, accused Cagalli of not supporting the National Statue of Human Rights and Robot Relations and even hinting that she had been romantically involved with the robot—something not unheard of in more intimate circles. Cagalli had nearly lost her collective cool but she had tranquilized the wave of searing anger at such an alleged accusation as she steeled her back and told Yuna that Athrun would be staying in her house. That had been the catalyst to her request to Athrun to not touch the Seiran: she knew that any attempt on Yuna would spell bigger disasters and she knew that she was orienting herself into a rapid river that threatened to swallow her.

Now, sitting on the bench with Athrun in his stoic position behind her, she felt as though the Seiran had never stepped foot in her family home and that it was just her and Athrun once again. It was a feeling of safety that reminded her of being wrapped in a warm blanket and watching a thunderstorm through the window: the danger was there, but it was also distant and could be observed as such. It was though the safety of her haven had been restored and she felt Athrun draw closer to her as she leaned back into the bench, her eyes bright and alert as she hummed in her throat for the first time in a long time. It was almost as though she had been transported back to the tender formative years of her childhood when she had, had been able to read stories to Athrun who would listen to them despite whatever task he was dealing with, when she and Kira would dart around the house laughing at their antics, or when she would curl up against her mother or father and watch the sunsets or sunrises if she managed to awaken before her alarm.

"Come sit down," Cagalli said quietly and Athrun moved automatically as he sank onto the bench next to her, his frame doubled over as he rested his elbows on his knees, his green eyes trained on the sunset that was happening before them. "I missed this. It's like when Kira and I were kids, remember?" He nodded and she gave him a tepid smile as she stretched her arms upwards towards the sky, a flock of birds passing by overhead and the jet streams criss crossing into an intricate pattern in the crimson sky that was fading to darkness. The robot and his human companion sat in beautiful silence, the air pregnant with the events that had occurred that moment but neither seeming willing to engage the other in the conversation.

"Do you remember when that stupid boy dumped me and we sat here for hours while I told you how I think men are stupid?" She asked suddenly as she laughed lightly, the creases around her eyes slighting as the shadows danced over her face. Athrun nodded once again as he gave her his interpretation of an eye-roll and her smile widened. "I can't believe I acted like that—I still sort of think the same, but at least my tastes have changed over the years." Cagalli had been twelve and the boy she had, had a childlike crush on had dumped her in front of the other children on the playground, making her cry on the entire car ride home and into the foyer of the house.

Athrun had found her curled up on the bench a few hours later, after their father had told her to leave her alone to sort out her emotions, and he had sat with the girl as she mumbled on about how she felt rejected when she had only showed kindness. Little did she know, Athrun felt a similar sentiment towards most humans: he only showed tolerance and kindness towards them yet they rejected him for his very obvious lack of humanity. It was a bizarre moment when he truly felt that his kind were closer to humans than anyone would expect and he had sat with Cagalli until Kira had coaxed her into the house with promises of her favourite food for dinner. She sniffed but she had grabbed Athrun by the hand and tugged him along to the house, the two of them entering the kitchen as their father looked up at his daughter ferrying the giant docile robot into the family home.

" _Feeling better now, Cagalli_? " Her father inquired as he looked back down at his laptop. Cagalli made a face at her father's question nd Kira was laughing gleefully at the image of his sister joined at the hand with the family robot. " _You cannot make everyone fall in love with you, my child. It's painful, but it will pass. As most things do."_

 _"Athrun shouldn't be falling in love with her,_ " Kira corrected as he gave them a sly look through his untamed chestnut hair. _"Cagalli's too stupid to fall in love, but Athrun's really smart."_ Their father looked up once again from his work and looked at his twin children with a solemn gaze that had the trio freeze as they awaited the Prime Minister to say something of gracious proportions. They knew that the Prime Minister had been piloting a program to incorporate robots into human society and that the technology that went into engineering them was beyond most civilian understanding. They were extremely wonderful machines that served many purposes and brought much joy to the world. Others, however, opposed such measures to integrate robots into human life and thought that the notion of co-habitation was a disgusting affair that was only perpetuated when brothels revealed that many women were robots working to service the clients. There were incidents of high profile individuals entering into relationships with their robot counterparts and it stirred controversy wherever it went.

" _Kira, Cagalli—even Athrun, the three of you are lucky to live in a state where who you love is not dictated by the government and is something that you can pursue of your own free will,_ " The Prime Minister said in a regal voice as he closed his laptop and rested his hands on top of them. _"Humans and robots walk a very similar path yet at difference paces. Yet sometimes the journey is best made in good company."_ He gave them a mild smile as he rose to his feet, storing his laptop on side table as he moved towards his blonde daughter who was still holding Athrun's hand. _"Remember, you are free to love who you wish. If that feeling is returned, it is the most wonderful thing in the world."_

 _Love, huh_ , Cagalli thought as she blinked the memory away from her vision and slid her glance to take in Athrun's tall frame that was staring out over the mountain with a pensive expression plastered on his handsome face. His hair was mussed and it gave him a certain look that Cagalli secretly admired as the wind licked at his tresses and she winced inwardly as the pain throbbed between her legs once again. Her father's words were a heavy cleaver against her heart at the realization that they were not necessarily true: she was free to love who she wished but the legal mechanisms that were being exploited had ripped that freedom from beneath her feet and castigated her to live a life with someone who saw her for her political value to secure his own political foothold and pave way to a legacy that would undo everything she had been raised on in terms of beliefs. Her heart was heavy at the realization that her freedom was just another commodity that had been traded away for the benefit of the state.

 _Love_ , She repeated internally as she turned her head to look at the stoic robot who had been her rock over the last sixteen years. He had seen her through many things: her heartbreaks, her triumphs, her joy, her pain, her rise, her fall, and everything between. Athrun had always been waiting for her by the door and had always welcomed her home: welcomed him back to the sanctuary that he laboured intensively at to ensure was a place of absolute safety. He had turned the home into a safe harbour that protected her from the most vicious of storms and even when she was caught in the most violent of winds, he was still there despite her begging him to not throw a safety line out to her. She had felt how he embraced her, his arms wrapped securely around her smaller frame, how he would run his fingers through her hair in comforting her, how he would know how everything about her from mere observation and pure immersion. Even if he was a being of few words, he did not have a necessity to vocalize his thoughts as an independent organism because he knew that she would understand through his actions.

 _Do I love Athrun?_ She asked herself inwardly as she shifted her gaze back to the mountains before them. It was a question that she was unsure of because the love she had felt before had been superficial or a different interpretation of it. She held a non-romantic love towards Kira and Lacus, they were people she would gladly take a bullet for if only it meant for them to escape unhurt. She held a sisterly love towards Mirailla, despite being her secretary, she was also a close friend with whom she had graduated high school as well as university. She held a respectful love for her parents and for the sacrifices that they had made for her wellbeing, and she held a general love for her country and its people that she seemed to share with the late Prime Minister who had taught her to love the country for its greatness and its faults.

 _But for Athrun?_ She frowned to herself as she pondered the puzzling question. With Athrun she felt safe and warm, she never doubted that he would betray her or take advantage of her in any situation. She felt an unwavering trust that burned hotter than the desert sun, a strong bond to the silent robot that had taken it upon himself to protect her through even the more daunting periods of her life, and someone who she knew would listen to her without any harsh judgement. Even though he was brought to the house as a household robot, he grew quickly to be a part of her family but she did not feel the brotherly love that she felt for her own twin. She knew that Athrun treated her differently from Kira and it thad taken her moving into her adult life to realize that those moments of holding his hand out of nowhere, cuddling up with the lanky robot with shocking green eyes, and those long strolls around the garden in solitude where she learned to appreciate his presence: all those moments had cumulated into something that she had not realized she was doing as a child. She wanted desperately to be close to an entity that was not originally programmed to allow emotional connections but had relented as he began to bond with her and allow her to defy his original purposes.

 _Do I love him?_ Her hands were folded on her lap as she closed her eyes and felt millions of memories shared together flash before her eyes. There were many gentle smiles that were not mechanical reactions, there was the warmth of his hand wrapped around hers as he guided her through the garden, helping her hop across the stones in the pond, the protective embrace he had assumed over her when her father's casket was lowered into the ground. They were all moments that she knew had happened and she had filed away and was unsure as to why they were surfacing at this very moment. The latest memory, the one of his face in a seemingly indifferent expression as he threw the coffee pot to the ground, was the one that stood out the most: despite the neutral expression he fought so hard to plaster on his face, she had caught a glimpse of something in his green eyes that she had never seen before and it disturbed the balance of her world to the point it was teetering on the very cusp of sanity.

 _Helplessness._

* * *

(A/N:) The intro quote was an extract from Leandro Lacerna's song titled Amoxicilina (which is a type of antibiotic). It's also available on Youtube as well, but it was from his first publically released album called "Violent".

As usual, I don't own the characters, just use them for my own means of destruction. Please don't forget to read and review! :)


	4. Chapter 4

Protocol

Stage IV: Terms and Conditions

"Though I know what I am, just who I could be is a mystery to solve."

* * *

Cagalli was finishing the meal that Athrun had dutifully prepared for her, noticing that he had used some of her favourite seasonings on the simple cut of meat, and she was unsure as to where the robot was lingering within the house. He had served her dinner calmly and then withdrew from the kitchen, disappearing into the darkness of the hallway. Cagalli found it odd behaviour on his part given that he would always sit with her or at least remain in the kitchen to keep her company in the fading afternoon light and it unsettled something within her. She had called out for him to come join her for dinner, despite the fact he did not need food to subside, but he had either not heard her call or had ignored her. It was the first time that he had behaved that way and she slowly made her way through the delicious meal, her own mind drifting in and out of thoughts as she still was unable to answer her own question she had posed earlier and now she had to contend with pondering as to why Athrun was ignoring her.

Athrun had retreated to the living room at the back of the ground floor, he himself sitting on the sofa where he had spent most of the day angrily reconfiguring himself as he tried to reprogram the urge to slaughter the Seiran-heir on the spot for hurting the blonde. The image of Cagalli being forcibly kissed and her writhing beneath the human's body was burned into his memory and he felt something churn within him that he had never felt before. It was a heated feeling that spread throughout his circuits, warming his body as he gave the image more thought and found that it wound him up. Athrun had always been the poster child of self control but he had never felt as provokedd as he had been in that moment as he watched as Cagalli looked at him with eyes that begged for him to not interfere despite everything in his body screaming at him to rid the threat from the sanctuary he'd created for the precious blonde.

He had spent the day brooding and questioning why Cagalli would not allow him to come to her defence—his original purpose that was still wired into his software—and he had various theories as to why the woman would suffer such abuses from the hand of the moronic Prime Minister. It was not the first time that Athrun had witnessed Yuna rough up Cagalli but it was the first when it was a deliberate provocation of the robot by doing it in his presence. He knew that Yuna had figured out that these actions only served to stoke an angry flame within Athrun's existence and he probably figured out that Cagalli had requested that Athrun not become involved or touch him. Yuna was the type of human that Athrun despised: the manipulative type that exploited others for personal gain as well as to make a point.

He had heard the smacks against raw flesh, the smashing of bodies against furniture, and the muffled cries from Cagalli but it had only become recent that Yuna had begun such demonstrations in his presence. The previous times Athrun had been able to anchor himself to his own quarters or he would force himself into stand-by mode in order to abide by Cagalli's order but Yuna had taken to being more spontaneous with the abuse. Athrun knew that the noises he was registering were horrid, a dagger burying into his existence and twisting around violently, and he wanted nothing more than to rip the heir to shreds and free Cagalli from her prison, but he knew that she had requested this of him for a reason that she had not seen necessary to share with him. He should have demanded why but he trusted his beloved human too much and knew that she more than likely had her own reasons for conserving such a secret from him.

Athrun watched that prideful, exhuberant, and free spirited little girl die in the time that she was legally bound to wed the Prime Minister and it destroyed him on the inside knowing that the spark of human brillance that she was, was slowly dying as the winds roared louder and louder. He many times wondered if there was an opportunity to revive that fiery spirit—if it was merely dormant beneath her pale skin—and he wished desperately to be able to analyze that possibility if not for his own selfish reasons than for those of the nation. He longed for those bright amber eyes to not have the cloudy look to them but he was unsure as how to recover something lost under such circumstances.

As a robot, many often believed that he was incapable of the wide spectrum of human emotions, but the technology that had gone into his conception and birth was vast and great as he was able to experience emotions. He mostly felt content and fulfilled while performing his tasks, he felt rage and disgust in the presence of the Seiran, he felt respect and kindness towards Kira, and he felt joy and something else that he was unable to pinpoint when he was near Cagalli. It was an emotion that he was unsure as to how to categorize and he racked his immense data collection to try and name it but he would draw up blanks at each turn or possible conclusion. He felt welcomed in her presence, he felt a great pool of warmth snake through his body, and he felt accepted and admired by what was once a little girl and now a beautiful woman who confided in him and allowed him, one that was not her kind, to touch her and draw close to the bright beacon that she had become for him. He knew that the environment that Yuna had propagated throughout the nation had accelerated more mistrust towards robots but even Athrun knew that beyond borders there were other things that could be better. He also knew that tearing Cagalli away from her country, the remains of her father's legacy, would shatter her spirit even more.

His navy hair framed a thoughtful face as he felt his body automatically begin sliding into stand-by mode by the lack of movement and he had not realized that he had been sitting on the sofa for well over an hour. He had heard Cagalli call out to him at some point but he refused to budge from the sofa as he was determined to better understand why she would not allow him to protect her from the hands of the disgusting Prime Minister that was set in his ways. Athrun had suspected that at one point or another, Yuna was going to order him be decommissioned behind Cagalli's back and she would come back to an empty and broken sanctuary that died away when they ripped his interior workings apart. As the pieces came together, Athrun was able to draw various conclusions as to what motivated the human he had allowed himself to grow attached to as she welcomed him closer to her as well. He would, at some point, want to confirm these details with her and he knew he had been given four days to weasel the truth from his charge.

His sensors picked up on the fact that she had abandoned the kitchen and he scanned the house only to discover that she had tucked herself into her private bathroom and he could hear the water in the shower running. Athrun paused momentarily as he debated ascending to the second floor or not, but he decided there would be no harm done in checking in to ensure that Cagalli was faring well after such an ugly sequences of events that had plagued her day. He wanted nothing more than to shield her from what hurt her the most yet she herself was stopping him from doing so. It was confusing as it was perplexing and Athrun felt the ball of confusion in his chest expand and contract various times as he took the stairs slowly and stationed himself outside her bedroom door which had been left ajar.

Athrun leaned against the wall as he remotely tapped into the security system and ensured that all the sensors and alarms were active as he scanned the perimeter quickly to find there was nothing lingering in the dark of the night. Satisfied that the house was secure and surprised that Cagalli had even set the alarm that was next to the sliding kitchen door, Athrun turned to the bedroom door as he stared at it with a vacillating gaze before he pushed it open and entered into her bedroom. He had been within her bedroom many times over the years for various reasons but since the Seiran had come to inhabit the house, he had refrained from entering Cagalli's room to check on her. Athrun would either station himself outside her bedroom door if he even felt the hint of something malignant in the air or he would force himself into stand by mode in his own private room to recharge himself and allow any updates to his system to take place.

He scanned her room quickly to see that she had discarded her clothes into a pile in the corner, her bag was flung into another corner and ignored, and her bed was made neatly because she insisted on doing it every morning as to not break routine. Athrun had taught her how to properly make the bed when she was ten and he showed her the intricate folding techniques he had been programmed with. He watched as she struggled with the sheets that were bigger than her, Kira's laughter providing a healthy soundtrack, and he had been surprised when she refused his help out of her own stubborn nature to try and do it herself. It was a practice that she still maintained to that day and he was impressed with that aspect of consistency in her life.

Moving silently towards her dresser, he gazed upon the contents that were scattered upon the wooden surface. There were a pair of earrings that she had received as a gift from a Delegation that she had only worn a few times as well as a few other pieces of jewelry. She had never been one for jewellery, Athrun had learned, and he remembered her loud protests about wearing formal garb when her mother had tried to convince her to wear the national costume for an important event. There were a few other knick-knacks and oddities that lined her dresser: they were mostly trinkets she collected when she was out travelling on Ministry business or from when her father would have her tag along on diplomatic calls and missions. She always brought him something back and he had lined them up on a shelf he had built. He also spotted an origami bird that he had folded for her three years ago when he had accompanied on her on a rare excursion into the shopping district and he had folded the bird for her while they were at a low-key cafe. He had not expected her to keep it and had assumed she would have thrown it away or lost it at some point.

What caught his attention the most, however, was a photo that he had known was taken on Kira and Cagalli's sixteenth birthday but he had not ever seen it before in print form. He recalled from his memory that the two of them that been sitting on the same bench where they had been earlier that day and Cagalli was slumped against him, her hand resting on her belly from having indulged into too much sugary cake and sweets. He was looking down at her with a delicate and bemused smile as his arm was wrapped around her shoulder gently and he could see how his face was softened with affection for the blonde teen who had been miserably sick for the next few days. Kira had taken the candid photo from the veranda and Athrun had registered the click of the camera but had allowed the photo to be taken of the two of them despite Cagalli despising photos and wishing to remain out of the public eye. Athrun could clearly recall that period in their intertwined lives: It was after years Cagalli's mother had passed away and a year before her father would perish. He'd classified it a weird transition point that had left its stains on Cagalli's personal growth as a human given that she had, had to learn to coexist with grief at a young age as well as being to assume the weight of the world of carrying her family's name on her shoulders.

The robot was silent as he glided over to the bathroom door, his hearing sensors hypersensitive to the movements within the bathroom. Even though the water in the shower was running, he did not hear the sound of them hitting human flesh and his eyes narrowed as he tried to suss out Cagalli on sound alone. There was no movement or rustling of clothes, there was no squeezing of a stubborn shampoo bottle or scrubbing of a rag over her body. He could only hear muted breathing that seemed rhythmic but hurried. Athrun raised his hand to knock on the door, rapping his knuckles against them.

" _What_?" Her voice was splotchy and seemed distorted through the water. Athrun realized that out of her line of vision that he was unable to communicate with his usual array of gestures and expressions and he rolled his eyes. He hated speaking because the sound of his voice was something that he had not practiced a million times and he only spoke when he wished to truly have his voice heard. His voice was only really used in the presence of the blonde, Kira having only heard him once or twice, but she was the only one that had, had the pleasure of being able to listen to his rare utterances.

"It's me."

"Do you need something?" Her voice was trembling and Athrun's nerves froze as he reached for the door handle and found that she had left it unlocked. Jangling it open, he pushed open the bathroom door and was met with a wall of steam from the boiling water that spilled from the shower head and a nearly naked Cagalli that was wrapped in a towel. Her pale skin was rubbed a raw red from scrubbing, angry nail marks creating a cartographer's dream over the topography of her skin that demonstrated horrid red intersections from where she had scratched at her skin. She did not bother to turn around but she raised her gaze to stare at his reflection in the mirror.

Athrun's mouth shut as he snapped his jaw, but he moved towards the delicate human ward with a determined pace to his step as he reached for her shoulders and spun her around roughly, stopping her with his arms as she threatened to lose her balance from the sudden brusk movement. Cagalli stared at him blankly as his emerald eyes darkened as he took in the damage on her skin. There were marks from where she had been trying to scrub herself clean, the putrid smell of heavily scented body soap invading his nose from abusive use, and there were marks that seemed to have faded with time as bruises or scars that he had not seen her have before. His hands rose to her shoulders as he tried to transmit the alarm that was setting off in his head and she continued to tremble as she felt his stare intensify as his eyes raked her body trying to understand the marks.

"These are from Yuna, yes, I know what you're thinking," She murmured in a voice that seemed distant and pulling away even further. "I've been trying to clean my body… but I still feel dirty no matter how much I scrub." In her hands he saw a bunched up washcloth that was tinged pink from the raw wounds that she had scrubbed over to the point that they bled. Athrun's face snapped into his normal mask of impartialness as he slowly reached for the rag, gently extricating it from her grip as she did not resist him. There was a mix of shame and despair that seemed to settle on her face and the robot was once again unsure as to how to help her. He reached for another towel and slowly wrapped it around her shoulders, covering the angry marks from his view and he grasped her elbow and slowly tried to pry her from her spot where she seemed cemented to the bathroom floor. She dug her heels in momentarily, also raw and sore, but gave up when she realized that Athrun would not let this slide. She allowed him to tug her along to her bed, him gently easing her onto the edge of it as he moved towards the freshly laundered clothes and procured a long shirt that she liked to use for sleeping.

" _Why_ can't I clean it off, Athrun?" Her voice was meek but he kept his back to her as he looked for pyjama bottoms but the question lingered in the air like cigarette smoke. " _Why_ can't I make it stop?" He did not know how to answer that question but he was aware that the literal aspect of the question was not what she was referring to through the cloudy gaze she was trapped in. Her eyes were mere slits on her face as she trained her gaze on the kindly robot's back as he riffled through her clothes to try and find whatever he was looking for.

" _Why?_ " He finally turned to find her other worldly stare fixated on him and he felt everything in his body cease for a moment at the defeated look that was crossing her face. He approached her with the shirt and shorts, setting them to the side, as he sunk to his haunches in front of her and looked up at her with the painfully thoughtful look as though he were trying to contemplate the best response to her question. Athrun did not now how to rid her of the pain that Yuna had caused her on physical and emotions levels but he wished that he could simply overwrite them as he could with himself. Just as he felt how close his kind where to hers, there were these moments that marked the stark contrasts between the two organisms and he never felt at ease when this happened.

"I know you used to hear the cries and when he would hit me," Cagalli said slowly as she lifted her left arm and pointed at a half faded bruise. "This was from three weeks ago when I told him I did not want him in my office if he was going to waste my time. He pinned me to a wall and would have nearly gotten away with it had my secretary not knocked at the door." Her eyes were tired and exhausted as she lowered her arm and lifted her leg as she pointed out a recently formed scar that cut across the skin right above her knee. "This one was from four months ago—he pushed me against a coffee table with sharp edges and he also bruised me here—" She pointed at her collarbone. "—It was because I told him that I thought that he was rushing the wedding and there was no rush."

Her hand came to rest on her lap, the towel dropping dangerously, and she lowered her head to avoid Athrun's probing and knowing emerald gaze. He knew that these were all Yuna's doing and he had been rendered powerless to protect her from the Prime Minister's bouts of violence against his fiancée. Athrun had not been happy at all when Cagalli had given him the news about her forced engagement and had gone into stand-by mode for nearly two days before he forced himself awake to continue ensuring that the family residence was still a private sanctuary. He was keen to the fact that Cagalli was a political weight in the state's eyes and she had been reduced to a mere political device used to promote agendas. He had not looked at her for nearly three days when she had finally snapped at him and asked him if he really believed that she wanted to be married off to the fuckwit of a Prime Minister that had driven the country into the ground. Athrun had been silent as he shook his head and he knew that the marriage was the symbolic union of the pure ideology of Cagalli's father's legacy and the tainted and marred legacy of the Seiran family.

"This morning, when he had me pinned against the wall and was doing…" Cagalli trailed off as she bit her lip nervously. "…Well, when he was doing _that_ … I left feeling so dirty. I feel as though whatever innocence I have left was sort of… taken away. I _hate_ it. I really do: I hate being incapable of stopping him." She stopped speaking as she reached for the shirt and pulled it over her head to block the scars and bruises from Athrun's gaze. The robot was silent as she gingerly rose to her feet and stepped into the shorts, pulling them up and letting them settle at the flare of her hips. "Yuna is the type of man who does not think twice about hurting someone to get what he wants: he knows there are no consequences for his actions." She resumed her seat on the edge of her bed as Athrun remained crouched in front of her as he waited patiently for her to continue with her explanation.

"I also know that it has been very unfair for you," She said quietly as she finally let her gaze latch onto his own. "My request for you not to take action against him… I know you have difficulties trying not to do it. I saw it on your face today." Athrun remained stoically quiet as he did not even give her a nod of confirmation, he himself curious to see where this bout of self realization as to why she was had acted foolishly in not letting him exercise his duties as her protector. He knew that the blonde was a considerate individual and she had not one malicious bone in her body as far as he was concerned. "I saw it on your face, Athrun… and I'm sorry that you have to see all this and not be able to help." Her voice trembled again as her eyes glowed in the low light with the traces of tears filling her waterlines.

"Let me," He said slowly, his voice coming to life once again.

"I _can't_ ," She bit out as the tears began to leave silver streaks down her cheeks. "If you touch him, he'll take you away from me. I can't live with that, _Athrun_ —I've lost too many people already." It clicked in his brain that his theory was correct in assuming that her taking the brunt of the rage of Yuna was in protecting him from whatever the lavender-haired politician would be able to do. In Cagalli's mind she had calculated that she would be able to protect Athrun and effectively reverse their roles to prevent Athrun from being hurt by the vicious man who she was to marry. She was prioritizing her robot over her own safety and while it was foolhardy and moronic, Athrun felt the warmth in his pit bubble as he understood her motives. She knew how the game worked and how the politicians functioned and how they would use the laws and the National Statue of Human Rights and Robot Relations protocols to have Athrun removed from her life. She had made a decision to let her body be whittled away by the Seiran's fierceness as opposed to lose the one thing that made her home, home.

"I can't lose you, Athrun," She murmured in a low tone as she stared down at her hands, the tear drops pelting against her skin. "If I were to lose you, too, I wouldn't know what to do." The robot's eyes were bright in the fading light of the table side lamp as he realized that her selflessness for protecting him and their relationship was a force to be reckoned with. He slowly rose to his feet, his tall form towering over the human woman, and he eased himself onto the bed next to her as he slowly extended his arms out and wrapped them around her in a comforting embrace that he was banking on transmitting his anguish at her decision to act this way had caused. She sank against his chest, his arms enclosing her protectively as he slowly maneuvered the two of them to lie down on top of the made bed as he felt her draw closer to him, her hands reaching up to clutch at his shirt, the fabric wrinkling in her fisted hands.

Her smaller body was warm against his artificially cool exterior and he felt his guard drop as she curled into him even more, her legs tangling with his much longer ones. His green eyes closed as he rested his chin on her shoulder, tucking himself against the warmth that emitted from her body. Athrun knew that this was much more intimate than he would have ever allowed himself but the realization that she had been taking literal punches for him drove him to a point of frustrated admiration for the human woman that he had watched grow up. That was the sort of thing that Cagalli would do: he had seen it as she grew from a child to a woman and he found it tiring and often wished that she would make a selfish decision for herself on the rare occasion it would benefit her. He felt at the present moment that the safest place for her would be securely at his side so that he could shield her and allow her to try and understand that these types of decisions destroyed him on various levels. Her body fit perfectly against his in all the right places as though they had been engineered for each other but he pushed that perceptive sensation down as he focused on Cagalli drawing deep breaths and calming herself.

"I won't leave you," He mustered the words that rumbled in her ear.

"Do you promise?" A nod of his chin bumping against her shoulder was sufficient and she released his shirt as she wrapped her arms around him, resting them on his shoulder blades. He pressed her closer to his form, greedily taking in the human contact. Athrun was no stranger to the fact that humans and robots entered into intimate relationships: all the robots gossiped on their own personal networks and he occasionally dialled into the frequency to see what was happening. There were talks of how human flesh was supple and warm, how they felt truly alive when partnered with a human—despite the taboo and the stigmas that seemed to reared their ugly heads back up—and how they felt the authentic desire to be close to those that they were modelled after. He could recall one distorted yet misty voice that spoke of how much she had grown to love the human she worked with as he treated her with an unconditional affection that she was unsure as to how to return. Athrun had thought they were mere exaggerations but it was blow to the wind as he brought the smaller blonde closer to him and dared himself to press a chaste kiss against her temple.

"Athrun?" Her voice seemed to be petering out as her eyes peered at him in surprise for such an unexpected gesture. He gave her a gentle smile that seemed partially forced as he rested his head back on her shoulder and began to run his hands up and down her back as her mother had done when she was younger.

" _Rest, Cagalli_." They were two words but they were enough for the blonde as she gave into his simple command and allowed her eyes to close. Athrun would soon follow her as he allowed his body to be put into stand-by mode but not before he began to formulate a plan to ensure that Yuna never laid a hand on Cagalli again as well as ensure that his own existence was not put in question. His face morphed into a tight grimace as he looked down at the slumbering face of Cagalli and realized he would go the metaphorical distance to protect this wonderful human that he was more and more convinced he was enamoured with as they had closed the last centimetres of physical distance that had always been lingering between them. He had never dared when he was a child, maintaining a respectful difference, but as Cagalli began to mature, she herself would initiate seemingly innocent gestures such as leaning against him or holding his hand.

He himself began to question, as his body began to drift into his digital sleep, if there was still room on this planet to be able to allow himself to love this woman freely as any human would. Her father spoke of freedom of loving whoever he desired to be with—including Athrun—but the world had changed significantly since the Seiran had taken the reins and drove the country in the opposite direction.

As he finally settled down for the evening, he decided that damned be to the world, he would let this once act of seeming social disobedience be the once that cast their future in a different direction.

* * *

(A/N:) Intro quote is from 'The Underground River' from the Made in Abyss OST. Absolutely one of the best soundtracks I've had the pleasure of hearing in recent years.

As always, the characters are not mine. :)


	5. Chapter 5

Protocol

 **Stage V: Ties**

"I can still hear him screaming at you in the garden,

And I'm here on standy-by,My only battery is your smile,

If you ask me to do it, I'll kill him."

* * *

Cagalli felt her bladder protest against her as she felt her eyes flicker open, a strong pair of arms wrapped around her waist. She remembered falling asleep with Athrun on her bed but she had not expected him to be there when she woke up. However, much to her surprise, the robot was still asleep next to her and they had shifted in the evening so that her back was planted firmly against his chest, their legs tangled together and his arms securely fastened around her body, his chin resting on the crown of her head. Cagalli knew that trying to extract herself from his grip was going to be impossible and she resigned herself to hoping that he would boot up soon or she would be in serious problems.

She recalled the brief promise that he had made to her about not leaving her and she felt as though the weight of the world had been lifted from her shoulders as she curled back closer into him, breathing in gently as she studied his sleeping face. Athrun's exterior gave him the appearance of any human, with slight details that could only be spotted if one knew what to search for, and she knew that despite having lived with him for sixteen years, there was much she did not about the stoic robot. She was unsure as to how his mind worked, how he perceived the world, and how he felt about being relegated to running the household and security detail. Perhaps he found it easy work or tedious annoyances, he would never tell her and she was aware of that mere fact that he simply was content when she seemed to break his routine from time to time. He seemed happy enough when he was allowed to engage with her as a child, allowing her to tug him along on whatever silly adventure she and Kira were determined to go on, and as she grew into a woman, he had become a steady figure that never wavered despite the ins and outs of her life.

If he was willing to stay with her through all of this, knowing how hard headed she had been when she had requested that he not touch Yuna out of her attempts to protect Athrun, Cagalli began to ponder the very question she had posed herself the previous night. She was sure that the gentle robot's affections and her growing desire to choose him over her herself were signs that she was either going mad or was truly falling in love with someone who the world would frown upon if she were to pursue that avenue. Yet, if she knew herself, she would not shy away from the challenge of going against the world if it meant saving the one person she could with her influence. All she wanted was to be able to confirm that he had a mutual opinion before she gambled everything in one go.

"Good morning," She found herself murmuring as she heard the mild whirring of something stirring to life beneath his skin and he gave her a crooked and sleep-drunk smile through the hair that fanned around his face. Cagalli reached up and brushed it from his face, his eyes tracing her movements passively, and she found herself smiling quietly back at him. He refused to loosen his hold on her as he simply adjusted his grip on her body and he brought her so that they were eye to eye.

"Good morning," He crooned in his own sleepy voice, opting for the human greeting as his voice vibrated pleasantly in his throat. As his vision cleared and he was able to study Cagalli closer, he found that she was watching him with a soft gaze that reached her lips as her smile broadened a bit more and she rested her head against him. She had not slept that well for many years and she had not been plagued with a single nightmare or had been jarred awake in a sweat. Since her brother left the house, she had been unable to have a complete night's sleep that left her perfectly recharged for the following day. She often fuelled her needs with coffee and caffeine boosts to keep her going throughout the day.

"Funny to find you here," She commented in a half joke as she winced as her bladder twinged once again. Athrun merely raised an eyebrow as he rested his head back down and contented himself with staring at the lioness that he had wrangled between his arms. She truly was an exquisite creature that enraptured him and drew him in like a moth to a light: Athrun was unsure as to what would happen in the next few days as he formulated his plan but he knew that the next three days would be enough to ensure that Cagalli never had to suffer another blow on his behalf and that he would not be raptured away in the night.

"I don't want to go to work," She murmured. "This is… nice." Athrun stilled as she moved against him and he realized that today was a weekend day and as a Minister she did not have to work the weekend shifts unless there was an emergency. He nudged her with his cheek and she gave him a sleepy look as she blinked owlishly and then gave him a sheepish grin at his pointed look. "Right.. it's Saturday."

"That's right," He muttered. "We could stay here all day." Cagalli was silent as she contemplated his words for a moment as she tried to pick through them. Whatever revelations that had been made last night were fresh in her mind and his promise of not leaving her sat on her conscious as she tried to fish out the various interpretations of what he could have meant by those very simple yet profound words from a being that was just as complex if not more than a human. He was resting beneath her window and the first rays of sunlight hit him, his body awash with the warm beams of light that gave him an other-worldly appearance that she had never seen him have.

"Now you decide to be talkative," She joked as she tried to break the awkward silence and his grin widened slightly at her attempt.

"Only with you," He allowed himself to speak, his chest fluttering at the smile that Cagalli gave him at the realization that he was using her voice for her and only her. The robot was still hesitant to use his voice too much but he had to admit that this was far from an unpleasant experience. He pressed another kiss against her temple, as he had done the night before, and Cagalli shivered at the contact but found it filled her with a calming sensation that this perplexing yet wonderful robot was taking her to an edge that not many decided to walk.

"That's nice, too," She murmured as her eyes dropped to his lips and his gaze softened as he contemplated her expression before dipping even lower capturing her lips in a gentle kiss. Athrun was determined to not scare her away from the sensation as he had seen Yuna do, Cagalli flailing from his forced ministrations, yet Cagalli did not shy away from Athrun as the robot felt her lean into his embrace and shyly invited him to go deeper. The blue haired robot obliged her request, slowly conquering her as he felt another wave of warmth wash over him: the thrill of pursuing such a perceived taboo activity that went against the current government's political campaign to keep robots and humans separate or the fact that perhaps Cagalli's father had, had the foresight to have seen where their relationship would end up—either way, Athrun knew that he had to have her or he would wilt away.

He adjusted his hold on her, allowing her much more room to move around as she slid her body into a much more comfortable position to allow him to gently explore her mouth, let her become comfortable with his gentle movements as he felt a hint of dominance nagging at the back of his mind but not allowing himself to scare her away. He had seen and heard too much from Yuna's actions and had quickly learned what actions would spook Cagalli and he preferred their slow pace as he grew to know the woman in a way he would have never expected. As they drew away from each other, Cagalli's chest was heaving slightly and her cheeks were flushed as she came to the same realization that she, too, was waging the internal battle about the taboos that they were committing in an unfavourable climate. However, from how she was clinging to his shirt and how she seemed giddy from the kiss, he deduced that she was ready to cross the boundary with him as they had their backs to the world for the moment.

"Athrun?" He raised an eyebrow again. "I, uh… need to use the bathroom." She gave him a slightly sheepish look but he released her and watched as she scurried across the floor and into the toilet, the door closing behind her as she muttered a curse. The robot leaned back into the plush blanket, realizing that the bed was only slightly mussed, and he crossed his arms behind his head as he wondered if any of this was appropriate on any level. Cagalli, despite her unwillingness to be, was an engaged woman and she was due to marriage the Seiran heir within the next few months. Athrun realized he was able to chalk up two major taboos—as if he were keeping count—and he found himself oddly indifferent to stealing away the precious human he had watched over and cared for, for the last sixteen years. She had not shied away from him or resisted his kiss and that to him served as a flicker of hope in an ever darkened world.

Perhaps it would be enough for the two of them.

* * *

Cagalli's back was to Athrun as she sat on the old rope swing that she and Kira had passed countless hours on when they were children. Athrun was standing a meter away from her, watching over her swinging figure as she hummed in her throat, the simple plaid button down and comfortable shorts much more appeasing to him than the stuffy garments the Seiran forced her to don in the sake of public image. She looked like any other happy woman in her early twenties as she continued to swing back and forth mindlessly, happily taking in the landscape that spread out far and wide. The house was situated on a massive hill and allowed them priceless views of the capital and the mountains. Athrun had worked hard to ensure that the house was always in working order for the blonde and he had come to think of it as 'their' house as opposed to 'her house'.

She nearly fell from the swing when she felt Athrun reach out and catch the rope, his arm coming up to stabilize her to prevent her from falling to the ground in a tumble of limbs. His green eyes were bright and pensive as he caught her annoyed look at interrupting her swinging but it was accompanied with a smile. He had caught her on her way out of the bathroom once again, planting another cautious kiss on her lips before pulling away, and she told him that she wanted to spend her morning in the garden before it grew too hot. He agreed, seemingly content with her request, and moved down to the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee to have it brewing for when his ward came down the stairs.

Her feet were bare, the blisters still raw and irritated, but she seemed much happier and more akin to the woman he had expected her to grow into. She had shut her laptop down and put it away, swearing off work for a day, and she had dressed in civilian clothing that was extremely casual for someone of her supposed calibre. Athrun propped open the kitchen door that opened to the veranda as he gestured for her to go have a seat in one of the wicker chairs while he finished brewing the coffee in the kitchen. Cagalli had deposited herself into one of the chairs, crossing her legs beneath her, as she stared out at the garden covered in dew.

"Thank you," She said automatically as Athrun set down a coffee cup on the outdoor table and took his seat next to her. He watched as she reached for the coffee cup and brought it to her lips, taking a tiny sip as she nursed the hot drink. He was content if she was happy and he felt as though they had gone back five years in time to Cagalli's penultimate year in university when she was much more bubbly and had more reasons to smile. She had polished off the coffee with gusto before pushing the chair back and she stood up and beckoned for Athrun to follow her. The lanky robot followed after her, watching as she zig-zagged across the lush grass of the garden, her injured feet moving in a haphazard rhythm that made no sequential sense to him.

"That's mean," She commented wryly as she dismounted the swing and stood next to the docile bluette as she felt the wind rustle her blonde hair. "Shall we go back inside?" He extended his arm to her and she accepted it, allowing him to ferry her back to the safe confines of the sanctuary that seemed more lively knowing that the wretch of a Prime Minister would be away for a few days. The house seemed to thrum with an underlying pulse that only Athrun seemed to be tuned into as he helped her up the steps and back into the kitchen, closing the door behind him. The sanctuary was coming to life, the blanket of security that he had thrown over their home was readjusted and tugged neatly into place. The house was their private sphere in which Athrun knew he could best protect the blonde Minister without the outside world looking in.

Athrun and Cagalli padded down the hallway to the living room and they installed themselves on the sofa: Cagalli holding a book that she had nearly given up on reading because of the lack of spare time and her companion connecting into the robot frequency to see what was floating around those of his kind. His gaze zoned out and Cagalli watched as he stilled immensely as his body received the signals from others and he began to internalize and process the data input. She returned back to her book, happy to be able to pick up on where she had left off with the plucky protagonist who was making the journey to the East. She picked through the next three chapters, her body inclining and leaning in Athrun's stiff form. He did not move as she made contact with him but she knew that he would come to in a bit.

He blinked when he realized that Cagalli had dozed off against him and he tried not to move too much as to avoid bringing her back to the waking world. Sleep, he knew, was precious for her given that her nights were often plagued with distractions ranging from work to nightmares and the fact she had dozed off on her own was a great relief to him. He wrapped an arm around her carefully as he stared down at her form, trying to understand the conflicting emotions that were eating away at his insides: he wanted to be as close to Cagalli as possible, that much was certain and was solidified when he confirmed that even the human was wiling to play his role to ensure his safety. Yet he also knew that they were dancing a lethal tango if they were to find out: Cagalli would surely be put under question and suspended from the Ministry of the Interior and he was unsure what would become of him. He had entertained the idea once again of fleeing the country and taking her with him, but he knew it was not feasible for either of them. As a robot, he had no passport, and as a citizen rooted to her country, she would refuse the idea.

There was a third option that he had contemplated deeply and knew that if Cagalli became aware that it had crossed his mind, he would pay the price of hell and then some. Even the arguably simple household robots were still complex machines that were programmed to defend their household. This ensured that they were able to disable and even eliminate targets if required, and Athrun knew that, that feature laid deeply dormant within his existence. He had never had to use violence or kill any threat off from hurting the family that had taken him in yet the information was a mere file away for him. Perhaps ridding the world of Yuna Roma Seiran would be doing the world a favour but he knew that Cagalli opposed unnecessary killing and violence.

"You look like you're thinking really hard," Her voice murmured and his eyes darted to her face as she stared at him. "Are you alright?" He nodded and gave her a reassuring smile that did not quite touch his eyes and she felt her frown lines deepen at the artificial smile he had given her for her own sake. Cagalli scooted closer to her companion who welcomed back her warmth with open arms and sighed as his arms came to rest around her.

"When Yuna comes back, I don't know what we're going to do," She muttered. "Technically, this is a sort of emotional infidelity—but when I don't want to even be married to him? I'm not sure what to make of this." His hands came up to her shoulders and began to rub small circles into them, her head listing to the side as she crossed her arms to give him better access to her muscles. The robot agreed that she had a point in that regard because he'd had the same thought earlier that day but he did not want to voice his opinion that those silly human relationships that were supposed to symbolize something held any appeal to him. Athrun found the entire affair between the Prime Minister and Cagalli to be another annoyance to him and he was decidedly happier being able to bring Cagalli over to his side if she was willing to cross the line.

"We've still got a few days," She said with a dark sigh. "I don't want this to end—once he's back, we won't be able to—you know." Athrun's face remained unmoving as he found it oddly adorable that a young twenty-something human was still a bit hesitant to address what he assumed were normal human urges in terms of sexuality. He knew the mechanics thanks to dialling into the robot world's private frequency unheard to human ears, but he had heard snatches of conversations between Cagalli and Lacus or Cagalli and her female friends that had come over on occasion. They were quite raunchy from time to time and he often found himself consulting certain things he heard to verify the truth behind them and was often left reeling more times than not that humans had reached such levels of performance.

The aspect of human sex was fascinating to robots who had no needs to procreate and it was merely an odd spectacle to many. Those that had decided to go against society and embrace the taboo of intermingling with humans raved about it and he had heard it from all pairs of all genders, races, and classifications. Many felt it helped to cement a relationship together, others participated in the act for financial gain—especially in the seedier border towns—and many participated to see if the experience was worth it or not.

It had never been a massive point of interest for Athrun but he had become an unwilling informant on it as the conversation of the females drifted to that, with Cagalli's gasps moderating the conversation from time to time. He was pry to the fact that sex for many was an act between loved ones while for others it was just mere activity. Athrun found himself in no place to judge but it put his perspective on Cagalli in a bizarre place that he had never considered before.

"I'm going to talk to Kira and see if there's anything that he can do to help you in case it gets bad," She said in a low voice. "At least you'd be safe with them."

"I'm not leaving you alone with _him_ ," Athrun stated firmly, refusing to utter Yuna's name.

" _But_ —" Athrun's sharp look was enough to cut Cagalli off as she relaxed once again in his embrace, the robot more than happy to wrap her in his protective arms as he seemed to be lost in his own thoughts once again. For sixteen years she had been guarded by the lingering presence of such a powerful yet mild-mannered individual and whilst they'd had their moments of close contact, it had been strictly platonic or innocent. Cagalli knew the lore around robots often regarded them as distant yet faithful to those they brought to live with yet she was unaware as to how true it was. Her Ministry's robotic staff had always been warm and receptive and she had made it a point to get to know them all. Even the robot whose arms she was currently cradled in was a daft exception to that notion of being indifferent if his quiet gestures and seemingly silent commitment to her were anything to testify against the cool exteriors of the bizarre creatures.

Her eyes had looked away from him as she stared at her legs, the light bruising and scarring from Yuna's bouts of rage and anger causing an alarming contrast against her pale skin. They were angry red lines that seemed engraved into her body as a constant reminder that her true worth was an exploitable good to many whereas the very robot a mere centimetres distance away saw her under a complete different light. The scars were not numerous in quantity—Yuna was smart enough to ensure that they were the absolutely minimum—but they were jagged, crooked, and aggressive looking marks that aged Cagalli in a way that was unsettling. They were reminders that she was just a piece in a complex political thriller to Yuna and that, that was very only selling point: her relative affluence, her political positioning, and her symbolic representation to the people who still rallied behind her. They were intangible things yet carried more intrinsic value to those who were familiar with the politics of their state.

To Athrun, it meant had nothing to gain from who her father had been.

She reached up to run her hands over the scar within distance, her fingers tracing over the skin of her thigh with a tentative caressing that seemed ready to retract if her skin began to singe in memory of how that scar came to be. Yuna had been drunk, having returned from an event with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and she had been sitting in the living room reading some briefings she had not gotten to addressing in the office. He had stumbled into the enclosed space, throwing himself on top of her—much to her protesting—and had begun to dig his nails into her skin angrily. He ran his palms over her body, his nails carving his unwanted signature into her thighs as she yelped at him drawing blood. He was once again invading her mouth with his, his hands moving up to fondle her breasts roughly as he squeezed the delicate flesh between his fingers, pinching her nipples violently as though trying to elicit more pitiful mewing from the blonde beneath him. The Seiran pawed angrily at her pants, too drunk to properly unfasten them, and Cagalli felt her heart sink as time froze, her body and her innocence being put into jeopardy by the very last person she would ever want touching her.

Cagalli had never been one to worry about sex or virginity: she had always been too focused on her academics or personal merits to give it a second thought. There had been childhood crushes but they were not necessarily pursued given that many were nervous to attempt to get close to the Prime Minister's daughter. She had of course heard of her friends' scandals over lunch dates, dinners near the pier, or even in the hallways of university, but she had always been off-put by them. It was a level of empathy that she had been unable to reach because it was never a massive priority to her. She had assumed that her time would arrive when it did and there was no point in giving it more thought than necessary.

Besides, as the Prime Minister's daughter, she was expected to maintain some level of innocence prior to her vows given that the political families of the state's legacy were still adamant followers of their deities and those remains of tradition were still apparent. Cagalli's father was much more liberal than other family members—that much was apparent—but she still grasped to the practice out of convenience more than anything. Sex was something whose mechanics she knew about but it was akin to driving a manual car: she could understand how it worked yet was unable to time the clutch and gear shifting to get the car moving.

Yuna's drunken attempts on her had left a bitter taste in her mouth: the idea of engaging in any sort of activity with the lavender haired politician made her anxious and nervous as she knew that based off his drunken attempts at claiming her, he was not the type to be labeled a generous lover. If anything, according to his escapades in the other regions of the country, she would be another conquest and another notch in the bedpost: her head carrying a greater price than others because of mere political status. He would see it as a formality to consecrate their marriage, producing an heir would most likely be pressured upon the unwilling blonde, and she would be relegated to a life of misery with someone who was chasing other skirts and using her as the mere tool that she had been seen as by the opposition. It was the win-win situation for the Seiran that left her reeling in a spiral of uncontrolled emotions as he would walk away with everything to gain and she would lose everything at some point or another.

As her hands raised to pass another stroke over the scar, Athrun's hand raised to cover her own, halting her from touching it. He laced his fingers within hers, his strong fingers entangling with her much more delicate ones, and he shook his head. She stared at him passively as she tried to understand the meaning of his action but surrendered when she knew that the enigmatic robot would never tell her half the things he was thinking. She could make educational guesses: maybe it was upsetting to Athrun to see the scars and know he had been ordered to not interfere or perhaps it was the mere fact the scar held too much of a darker implication for his taste. A cycle of abuse that they needed to break free from but they would be pitted against the majority and left standing on unstable grounding.

"He will not have you," Athrun's voice was calm and cool but the words smashed into Cagalli at two hundred kilometres per hour as she whirled around to met his darkened emerald gaze. He was looking down at her, his other hand coming up to draw gentle shapes into her palm. Her entire body trembled at such words, coming from the protective figure that was testing the waters that churned in warning, and she felt his hand settle on her collarbone, his fingers splaying out over the expanse of pale skin. "I will not let him."

"Athrun?"

"My objective has always been to protect you," The robot said neutrally as he watched as Cagalli shifted in his arms to better look at him, her golden eyes curious yet cautious. "To provide a safe household for the daughter of the late Primer Minister. He will not allow me to perform my duties." The robot's gaze softened and Cagalli nearly gasped at how human his face seemed to reflect the deepest emotions that came from a place of utmost intimacy and affection: there was a warmth to his green-eyed stare, a flicker of desire that swirled within his pupils, a pinch of masculine protectiveness that seemed to wash over him in a grand current of unadulterated and inexplicable emotional turmoil that he felt warming his internal core.

"What will you do?"

"I cannot contradict your orders," Athrun said steadily. "But if you were to ask, I would eliminate him from the perimeter." Cagalli gawked at him as though he had sprouted another head and her eyes closed as she sighed, snuggling closer to the robot's chest as she allowed him to tighten his hold on her protectively. Those were the most words that he had ever consecutively spoke to her and while they appealed to her on a primitive level, she knew that the moral issue of asking her companion to dispose of the Seiran were conflictive and would only bring more problems upon them.

"You cannot kill," She whispered gingerly.

"I do not wish to," Athrun replied in a low tone that rumbled from within him. "But if it is to guarantee your safety and well-being, I will not discard the possibility if it is requested." His hand resting on her collarbone lowered as he cupped her lower back, his hand cool against the warm fabric of her plaid button up. The robot, as Cagalli knew, was not one who was driven by emotional necessities like humans: they were duty bound and were often spurred on by the fact that their duties were interrupted or disturbed by an external force.

"Why would you kill?" Cagalli asked as she gave him a strained look that pained him to look at.

"For the same reason a human man would," Athrun answered.

"Revenge," Cagalli murmured and he shook his head, opening his mouth to utter the one word that had been buzzing around his head for the last few hours as he felt their world revert to what it had once been: "For _love._ "

* * *

(A/N): The intro quote is from 2036's fourth track called 'Tema de Amor', which can be translated as either "Love Song" or "The Topic of Love". It's quite an open interpretation, but the song is absolutely brilliant because Lacerna's voice is that of the robot. The full translation of the song is the following:

Por qué no me mirás ni un poco?/ _Why don't you even look at me for a moment?_ Desde lo que él te hizo, siempre mirando al piso/ _You've been staring at the floor since what he did to you_ Ya se, aún puedo escucharlo gritándote en el patio/ _I know everything, I can hear him screaming at you in the garden_ y yo medio apagado.../ _and I'm here on stand-by_ mi única bateria es tu sonrisa.../ _My only battery is your smile_ Si me pedís yo mato, si me pedís yo mato/ _if you ask me to do it, I'll kill him (x2)_

And in response to one particular review, whose lengthy response was a nice thing to find in my inbox:

HNNKN777: I've actually a copy of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep on my bookshelf! Considering it was the base for Bladerunner, it's quite the work of fiction! I've always sort of seen the difference between the Naturals and Coordinators as the seemingly natural obsession with trying to engineer the perfect human, tweaking genetics until they were the very image that they wanted humanity reflect. Taking it a step further, and of course in an alternative setting, I wanted to experiment with the very human-esque nature of an android like robot that is supposed to be the image of humanity without the flaws of a mortal and organic being. There's always the point that something will have to be sacrificed because perfection is impossible to achieve in many contexts, and there are certain realities that Athrun and Cagalli would have to face (highlighted briefly in the fact that Athrun will be eternally youthful in appearance as Cagalli ages into her body). This aspect, combined with others, makes it a challenge to disregard certain things that curse their developing relationship-but things that cannot be outwardly discarded at face value. :)

Once again, thank you for the reviews! Gundam Seed is also property of Sunrise, not me!


	6. Chapter 6

**Protocol**

Stage VI: Basis

* * *

The night was cool against her skin as she sat cross-legged on the wrap around veranda, her blonde hair pulled up into a messy bun. They had spent the rest of the afternoon in the living room in their odd yet comfortable silence, Athrun reverting back to his quiet and stoic self as he helped her up from the sofa and guided her to the kitchen. The tall blue haired robot prepared her a simple dinner, him bustling around the kitchen with ease and precision as he turned raw ingredients into a lovely dinner. He had once again left her in the kitchen to eat, he himself vanishing upstairs but allowing Cagalli to trace his footsteps as he moved from one end of the hallway to another a few times.

She pushed her half eaten dinner aside as she mulled over the words that he had uttered: " _for love_ ", and she felt herself at an even bigger loss in terms of trying to comprehend the robot's train of thought. He had laid down a significant hand of cards on the table as far as she was concerned and knew that if she truly wanted to ensure that she was not bound to the Seiran or risked losing Athrun, making the Prime Minister vanish would truly be a viable escape route. Yet she also knew that it was highly illegal and if Athrun and her were found guilty, it would be worse than any consequence she had previously thought of as a possibility considering the legal structures of the country. Murder was high on the list of felonies and was not tolerated to any extent by the courts: she could not risk Athrun taking a blow because of her selfish desire to free herself from this golden cage of political figureheads and misconstrued marriages for mere political gain.

As she stared out over the mountain and the residential district, she strongly considered asking in a favour to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to see if one of her closer allies in that could jimmy up a passport for Athrun and have it to her by Monday. Her heart ached for the beautiful robot that had watched over her painstakingly for sixteen years and knew that perhaps leaving the country that Yuna was destroying would be the best way to ensure that he was far from the talons of the Prime Minister and his desire to ostracize the general robot population. She herself knew that she could follow him but she would be lured back to her country—her sense of duty to guarding her father's legacy a much stronger magnet than she would care to admit.

She also considered calling Kira and asking him for his advice, but she knew that her brother and his wife were too prone to become obvious targets of Yuna's rage if their involvement was to be discovered by the wrong individuals or an unintentional slip-up. The last thing she wanted was to attract more problems to her amicable brother and her sister-in-law and she knew that they were in little position to act on last minute notice. Since Kira's retirement from the public eye and his desire to live a quiet life were something that Cagalli valued significantly, she did not want to gamble on that aspect of her life. Ruling out asking her brother for help hurt her to do, but she knew that she could at least use Kira's contacts to smuggle Athrun to safety if it came to it.

There was another lingering question that rested on the tip of her tongue: could a robot love as a human could? There was a very clear binary relationship that had been heatedly contested in the last few years and it was the value between organic and inorganic species. Robots had been artificially birthed with such an uncanny likeness to humans that it was difficult to understand where their relationship with humanity began and ended and where their existence as artificial beings began and ended. Cagalli knew of the men that flocked to brothels to engage in the media-deemed ' _kinky'_ relationships with what were female robots but she did not consider that to be love or anything akin to it. Lust, of course, humans were lusty creatures by design and the more bizarre approaches to sexuality made it that much more exciting. Yet it did not reflect the very sentimental elements that love seemed to carry between humans, be it fraternal, physical, platonic, unrequited, or romantic. She had never asked or inquired because it had never been a topic that occurred to her: Athrun had always been present and in his typical stoic and quiet reserved manner, demonstrated that he cared for her beyond a superficial obligation that was programmed into his existence.

She wondered if Athrun's words were his own or something that he had picked up in his constant intake of data and information that seemed to inundate him. His cognitive learning was on a much higher level than a typical human and he was constantly shuffling and picking through a consistent intake of data and information, making minute observations such as her favourite types of flowers or what type of coffee she enjoyed. He was a staggeringly confusing entity because his world, despite standing the same ground as she was, was completely different in terms of perception and relationships. She was fairly certain that Athrun was in-tune with the fact that love between humans and robots was a fairly complex and hot-button topic that provoked an entire rainbow of reactions yet he seemed to have little qualms about stating that he would kill for her out of love as opposed to duty.

As though on cue, said bluette robot slid open the kitchen door and waited patiently in the doorframe as the blonde's body slumped forward slightly, her eyes blinking against the fading light of the day. Another sunset that she would share with Athrun, another unique memory that was coloured with the fire that she wished she could stoke to regain her foothold in the world. She herself was not a tool and refused to be treated like one for someone else's gains and she often wondered if Athrun had ever felt as though he were a mere tool to the household as opposed to someone that she respected as an independently thinking existence in an already muddled world. She did not look back to acknowledge his presence but she could feel him approach as he sunk down onto the edge of the veranda with her, his much longer legs stretching out onto the grass.

"We should leave the house," Cagalli said out of the blue as she refused to meet his inquiring gaze as his eyes slid to study her profile. "I think it is the safest way to ensure that we're both safe from Yuna. We can go find a nice cottage in the countryside or something." Athrun was silent as he considered her wayward proposal, he himself having considered the option of trying to find a safe location for the two of them to flee to before Yuna returned to the familiar house. It stung his heart a bit to think that the years of maintaining and building the sanctuary would go to waste but he supposed that he could raise another one that was perfectly tailored to the blonde Minister that was sitting mere centimetres from him. The idea was appealing and he knew that he would be able to continue his duties as well as his careful ministrations to ensure that she was happy and satiated with life.

"I may have to retire from the Ministry, but… it _may_ not be so bad," She said with a rueful laugh as her shoulders shook. "I don't particularly care for being the Minister of the Interior, you know? We sort of get overlooked by the more demanding Ministries. I'm not proud to say that, but that's how it's sort of turned out." Her eyes were half lidded as they took in the sunset that was playing out before them, the two of them on their familiar veranda attached to the house that was placed on a strategic hill. She seemed to be gazing into the past and into the future but Athrun suspected that it was difficult for her to live in the present as things were for her. The robot knew that he could not ask her to abandon her dream to carry out the loving legacy her father had left behind upon passing and he knew that Cagalli's misery would not justify the move or change of scenery. It would be out of the frying pan and into the fire and the digital entity was unsure as to how much it could destabilize the golden lioness.

"Miriallia also gave me a list of contacts that are apparently strong believers in my father's legacy and still pass their support onto me,"Cagalli continued absent-mindedly as she drummed her fingertips on the lacquered wood of the veranda. "Although I don't know how useful they can be—it's all politics and I don't want to worry about that right now." She bit her lip and began to gnaw on the delicate skin out of anxiety that he could feel broiling beneath her skin. The bluette robot was still silent as he listened to her babbling on without any seeming end point and he turned his gaze back to the sunset. There were many times that the two of them had sat out on the bench or the veranda and watched the sun wave goodbye in signing off and Athrun knew that their time was limited as between the two of them they tried to scramble to find a solution that did not corral them into something potentially worse.

"Athrun?" He looked over at her again and found her rounded stare was trained on his face intently as though she herself were grappling with the words that she wanted to let come forth. The robot waited patiently, as he always had done, for the young blonde collect her thoughts. "What you said earlier, you killing for… _love…_ well, erm… _why_?" His expression was placid as he looked away from her again and let his head lower as he stared down at the obscenely green grass that spread out like an immense sea beneath his feet. He had known that Cagalli would inquire about that specific phrasing that he himself had felt come tumbling from his mouth without any secondary thought to the consequences it would reap the moment the words were freely hanging in the air.

"This is ignorance on my behalf," She continued in a delicate tone as though she seemed to be burdened with a great fear for asking the question that succeeded her statement, " _Can_ a robot love?"

"I do not know if what I feel is love," He answered mutely as he continued to stare down at the grass that he had worked hard to maintain for the late Prime Minister. The colour was a splendid mix of greens and green-blues that formed a patchwork quilt that spread throughout the lawn. The garden was an extension of the house and the robot tended to the flowers as he tended to the members of the household. "But I would do anything for you if you asked it of me. Perhaps that is enough."

"Anything, _huh_ ," She murmured between bitten lips as her tongue ran over the rugged flesh. "You've already done so much though, Athrun, there's nothing more that I could ask from you. You've always been there for me—which is more than I can say about anyone else. Somehow, you've always known how to make things better." Cagalli froze as she felt Athrun's hand slowly slide over hers and she looked down at his much larger appendage as it covered her smaller and unscarred ones, his fingers gently running over the surface of her delicate skin as he grazed her knuckles.

"There is much more that is still to be done," The robot said thoughtfully as he felt her gaze rise to meet his emerald one and she started at the flicker of a smile on his normally expressionless face. There was a warmth to the way he considered her frame and it was a stark contrast to how Yuna ravaged his eyes over her body. Athrun seemed to look at her as though he were admiring a fine piece of art or something immortalized by the deities above. There was a tenderness that seemed foreign to a non-human entity and there was a delicateness to his gentle movements of his hands that reminded her of the irony of him being able to kill if he wished to do so. She felt as though their two worlds were at the point of eclipsing each other and she knew that if he asked anything of her, she would give in to his request. She had been touched emotionally by the sturdy companion that had always been watching over her and she found herself wanting to be as close as she could to the one consistency that had weathered countless storms with her.

This would be the biggest storm that they had to sail through yet Cagalli felt the fear drain from her as Athrun leaned in, sealing her mouth to his and making her mind blank as she felt more protected and cherished than ever before. As he gently coaxed her to temporarily surrender to him she had the fleeting thought that she would gladly sink on the ship if it meant not losing sight of him. The pooling golden core that coiled in her stomach yearned for something more and she moaned into his kiss, not caring if the world crumbled around them.

* * *

"How are things at the house, Cagalli?" Kira's voice in the telephone seemed distracted as he banged around the kitchen and Cagalli felt herself giggle at her brother's utter clumsiness at anything labelled domestic. Her brother was genius in his own right and merit but she knew that he was an absolute disaster when placed in front of any sort of cooking device and required to fend for himself on that front. Kira had phoned her that particular evening out of nowhere and she had been more than happy to take the phone call.

Athrun was sitting at a computer that he had set himself to charge with as his systems were updated and he seemed to be in a comatose state. Cagalli had decided to sit with the robot in his own private quarters, she herself sinking onto the bed as Athrun plugged the cable into his wrist and gave her a mirthful look as she stared at him curiously as he settled into the chair. To Cagalli it resembled what humans called 'dialysis' as she could almost imagine the data flowing in and out of his mechanical body but she averted her gaze as her cellphone chirped.

"Yuna is out of town, so things are quiet here," Cagalli answered honestly. "It's just nice having Athrun around because the house is lonely without you."

"Are you trying to guilt me into moving back?"

"It would have _never_ crossed my mind," Cagalli retorted dryly as her eyes fell on the form on the handsome robotic man that was still hooked up to the computer. He seemed at ease, as he always did, but there was something especially serene to his expression as the computer moved through the various programs and diagnosed his system. Kira had often set up updates remotely for Athrun and would usually call or send a message directly to Athrun to let him know that it was ready. Kira's programs were mostly to boost already fairly well engineered systems and they kept Athrun in peak shape and fresh as a digital daisy.

"I have a feeling I'd end up trying to clobber Yuna," Kira confessed and Cagalli rolled her eyes but felt the smile cross her face as her lips curved upwards. "I can't say that I hate a lot of people but if I had to name one, he tops the list. Are you _sure_ that you want to marry him?"

"We've been over this," Cagalli muttered frustratedly into the phone's receiver as she brushed a blonde strand of her from her face. "I don't have a choice: the bloody Congress is basically blackmailing me into this. You and Lacus are supposed to be helping me on that end, remember? Or have you exhausted all your contacts already?"

"I know that Lacus was speaking to Yzak about certain legalities about pulling out fairly untouched legislation," Kira answered dutifully into the telephone, his voice tight and almost strained as he mentioned the famed constitutional lawyer that was an absolute hard-ass to work with but was a genius within the field of law. "But Yzak had been accused of asking too many questions in the legal reference library. He's trying to keep his head down for the moment."

" _Great_ ," Cagalli muttered sardonically. "And to answer your question, no, I don't _want_ to marry him." Kira's tongue clicked on the other line and she could imagine her twin trying to either not overcook the rice or he was making a sympathetic face. She heard a faint bang against the stove and something that sounded like a faint curse from her normally clean-mouthed brother.

"Well, that's the best we can do for the moment, but I'm sure Yzak is working his magic one way or another," Kira said in the attempts to comfort his sister whose gaze had fallen back on the form of the slumbering robot who was sitting across the room from her. "You should have run off with Athrun when you had a chance, Cagalli: would have saved you a lot of grief in the long run."

"Eh?" She hissed through the phone.

"You know, elope," Kira pointed out as she heard him hiss through his teeth as he grabbed a hot pot with what seemed to be a bare hand. "You can't be engaged to someone if you're already married. Well, legally _not_ —it's all down to stupid technicalities I suppose. Although I'm not sure I know of very many robots and humans getting hitched. I can already see the gossip rags having a field day with that."

"Is that you idea of a joke?" Cagalli demanded into the phone as she heard Kira bark out a dry laugh.

"Yes, it is," He admitted. "Well, in part. Athrun might not have any complaints about it: he always cared a lot more about you than he ever did about me. Even Father could see that when he first brought Athrun home, you know? He was always watching out for you and always took your side in our stupid kid arguments. If this is a way to get Yuna away from you, he'd go along with it." Cagalli opened her mouth to refute her brother's claim but she knew that the brunette was right in his commentary. Athrun had always favoured her significantly more than he had Kira and it had taken her own twin saying it for her to realize that, that was a concrete fact from a mature adult.

"Listen, Cagalli, you know that Lacus and I would do _almost_ anything for you," Kira said into the phone as she heard the clatter of a spoon being tossed into the kitchen sink. "But I have the sneaking suspicion that Athrun himself would do _anything_ for you. There's not a lot of indicators that I can tell you about what he thinks about, but whenever I get data from his upgrades you tend to crop up significantly. I've never seen that much of a preoccupation or fixation on a human before—and believe me, I see a lot of robot data. He's definitely always been _your_ robot and not _our_ robot."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Think of robots as starting off with the same cognitive capacities as a child," Kira began to explain as Cagalli could pick up on the sound of some liquid splashing about in the background. "They learn through interaction and are built to be sensitive to the environment that they're exposed to in order to learn, observe, and expand their knowledge on how to better perform. Most humans are fairly good with robots, but you've always been close to him and have shown empathy to him: that sort of emotion tends to be quite rare when directly oriented at a robot, understand? Thing of it as like a form of unconditional love and from that a child learns by feeling. We learn to love from the people we surround ourselves with.

"Athrun might not be the chattiest of robots," Kira continued as he banged another pot onto the stove and shifted the phone to his other shoulder. "But he never has had to be—he's always been watching and learning. That's quite unique, if you ask me. You've never treated him as a tool and that sometimes is just enough." Kira yelped again as he touched another hot pot and Cagalli felt her shoulders sag at the lack of hope that her brother would ever get the hang of domestic chores. His words, however, were latching onto her ears and refused to stop buzzing as a wave of conclusions crashed over Cagalli's conscious at the realization that the last sixteen years had been a moment that led to the cultivation of the very situation that she was presented with now.

" _Ah_ , Cagalli, how do I know if the rice is ready?"

"Eh?"

"The _rice_ ," Kira repeated as a note of panic entered his voice. "It's starting to smell sort of funny—is it supposed to turn brown?"

"Turn the gas off," Cagalli instructed as she felt her eyebrows arch at the sound of Kira fumbling with the gas marks on the stove. "Jeez, Kira, really? So much for being a genius—maybe I should be worrying about _you_."

"I always worry about you, Cagalli," Kira's voice came in somber over the line and Cagalli felt the hairs on her arm stand up at the sudden seriousness that had infiltrated her brother's voice as she heard him bump against the stove. "You've change a lot since this whole engagement thing happened and I'm worried that Yuna makes you do things that you don't want to do. We all see it in the way that the government is being run: we know that the real you would never let any of this happen. Lacus is especially worried… she has contacts in the Congress that comment things to her and you know how she is."

"I see," Cagalli said faintly.

"This was asked the other day but I'll ask _once_ more," Kira's voice was once again rigid as he dared to repeat what he'd asked her in the car: "You didn't ask me out to dinner to catch up, did you? You didn't want to go home."

"Kira," Cagalli protested but she heard her brother shush her over the phone and she snapped her jaw closed as she adjusted her legs on Athrun's neatly made bed, tucking them under her as she ignored the scar that flashed before her eyes.

"You don't need to say anything if you don't want to but don't believe for a minute that none of us pretend to not know what's probably happening behind closed doors," Kira said in a steady tone as she heard him set his pot on a dishtowel on the counter. "What you need to know is that you have a lot of people who want to help you and make sure that you're safe: if you don't believe me, I'll call the press right this moment and tell them that the Prime Minister is beating his lovely fiancée and we will see how much of a scandal takes off."

"You wouldn't do that," Cagalli whispered.

"I would if it gets you away from Yuna," Kira countered. "I know that the Congress would suspect that you or someone in your inner circle leaked this to the press, but it would take them a while to trace it back to me."

"Yuna has stacked the judicial branch with his supporters are there are very few of Father's old followers that have been able to survive the transition to this new government," Cagalli said miserably as she drew her legs even closer into her body and wrapped her free arm around them. "Even if that went to court, it would probably be discarded because the courts would rule in his favour despite the illegality of his actions." She bit her lip nervously as she racked her brain making a tally of the number of supporters that had been ousted from the courts for being too impartial and how many had been swept in through the revolving door of the court system.

"Shoot, I hadn't thought of that," Her brother's voice cracked over the phone. "Never mind, that might just make him angrier. Sorry."

"No worries," She said in a half whisper as her eyes closed as she felt a migraine rising in her temples. "We have been taking advantage of the fact that Yuna isn't here to try and think of something, but there's a lot of tape to cut through anyway you look at it. The best thing we've come up with is me quitting the Ministry and moving to a cottage in the country."

"Sounds quaint," Kira said sarcastically. "But don't fool yourself thinking that you would be happy with that. You'd feel guilty leaving behind the people that still want you to take over the position of Prime Minister and you can't sit still long enough."

"Do you have any suggestions other than trying to get the press involved?" Cagalli inquired heatedly.

"Mmm, well, not really," Kira confessed. "It's not the easiest, but at least you have the police under your control. Why don't you make a report with them? They're not as daft as to deny the very Minister that ensures that they all still have a job."

"Same problem, once it hits the courts, it's game over," Cagalli repeated as she allowed her body to fall over horizontally and cover the expanse of Athrun's bed. She stretched her free hand upwards and stared at her fingers, counting the wrinkles that were slowly forming on the stretch of skin. "Anything that requires using the legal system is probably not going to work."

"Flee the country?"

"Athrun can't get a passport," She reminded him. "You're not good at this."

"I know you have contacts in Foreign Affairs that would happily forge one, so don't accuse me of not trying to be proactive to help my dumber twin sister," Kira scoffed as he chucked another piece of silverware into the sink. "Yes, corruption is a problem, but at this point it's common practice. I'd leave the country on business for a while and make up some lie as to why Athrun must accompany you." Cagalli groaned heavily as she wished desperately to be able to shove her fist through the line to shake her brother silly for proposing the most outrageous of ideas but she huffed as she tilted her head as she recalled words he'd uttered mere minutes before.

"Kira?"

"Hmm?"

"When you were joking about eloping with Athrun…"

"No, no, _no_ ," Her brother repeated the word various times through the line and she could have sworn that the air dropped by a few degrees. "You know that, that would be political suicide because of the stupid ratifications to the National Statute of Human Rights and Robot Relations. It would get you removed from office immediately."

"But you yourself said that you can't be engaged if you're already married," Cagalli whispered into the phone as to not disturb the dozing robot that was mere meters from her. If Athrun was tuned in to the conversation, he was showing zero reactionary indications to her animated words. "If anything it can be used as a way of getting Athrun away from Yuna because he would lose any jurisdiction over him. The engagement is a mere formality but we have not signed any binding paperwork due to the clerks in the Congress messing up something in each clause."

"Yeah, but where are you going to find someone cooky-brained enough to help you elope? You yourself said that Yuna controlled the courts and they would never sign off on that sort of paperwork," Kira prodded as he felt his stomach sink at the lengths that his sister was even considering to ensure that Athrun and herself were protected. "The churches will not do it either considering they've taken a very anti-robot stance since Father put the system in place—christ, don't tell me you would…"

"We could always go to the borders," Cagalli said softly into the phone. "This is all purely speculation of course, Kira, relax. I know that the National Statute of Human Rights and Robot Relations is a blanket legality and would just be a bigger thorn in my side than needed." She grunted as she felt her foot bang against the footboard of the bed and she rolled slightly so that her back was to Athrun and she was facing the simple cream coloured wall of his room.

"Give me a day and I'll have some sort of idea," Kira said with a note of defeat resonating in his voice. "Some sort of idea that does not involve the legal system and getting the press involved. Everything legal and squeaky clean." She felt herself grin ruefully despite the gravity of the situation and she yawned into the phone as Kira blanched on the horrid rice that he had concocted on his own. She knew that Lacus would be returning soon from overseas and that her brother was eyeing the calendar eagerly knowing that he would be able to eat edible dishes once again.

"Alright, alright," She agreed. "I'm going to go now, it's late and I'm tired."

"I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

"Goodnight, Kira," She murmured into the phone as she clicked the line dead, not even waiting for her brother to bid her a good evening. Cagalli tossed the phone to the other corner of the bed and she rolled over so that she was facing the sleeping form of Athrun. He seemed oddly at peace and the stillness of his body did nothing to reveal the great strength and knowledge housed within his body. He looked and felt like a human but Cagalli knew he was much more complex and wonderful than any human she had ever met in her life. His features were backlit by the glow of the computer screen and the shadows danced across the face that had not aged a day since he had crossed the threshold into the family home. Athrun was an enigma wrapped in an artificially constructed body yet he let her have glimpses of intimate thoughts that darted across his mind from time to time, surprising her and catching her in vulnerable moments.

She felt her lips form into a crooked smile at the slumbering green eyed robot as she closed her eyes and allowed the blankets of sleep to be pulled over her body. She knew that Athrun would not stir for hours, she reasoned, a nap would do her a world of good.

* * *

(A/N): Intro quote is from the musical Evita and the song is ' _Waltz for Eva and Che'_.


	7. Chapter 7

Protocol

Stage VII: Unification

"Even in the coldest nights that I'm alive, you can keep me warm."

 _(A/N: Nothing graphic, but highly stylized citric flavours to bring in the hot Spanish summer. Ta!)  
_

* * *

Music stirred the slumbering robot as it drifted from the living room downstairs, beckoning to him to investigate why there was an old gramophone playing an antique record that had been untouched for various years. Athrun's eyes opened blearily as he took in his surroundings before reaching down and unlatching the cable feeding into his input slot on his wrist. He glanced over at where he had last seen the lioness and assumed that she had abandoned her posting on the bed and had crept downstairs. The update had left him feeling much more alert and refreshed and he knew that he would have to thank Kira for it the next time he saw Cagalli's twin. They were not frequent updates, his systems did not require as much as others, but they often refined certain things in his hardware that he would overlook or discard.

Padding down the stairs in the darkness, his heightened vision and senses guiding him without the necessity of illuminating the hallway, he reached the ground floor landing and turned to stare down from where the living room door was closed but he could see a faint glow penetrating through the cracks in the door. The music was muffled and he heard the odd shuffling of feet, his curiosity piquing as he plastered his typical neutral expression on his face as he slowly crossed the hallway, the music slowly becoming more and more recognizable as it hammered through its familiar notes.

It was an old disk that their mother had brought back from the Southern Federation of typical music that had been born and bred within the poorer districts of the biggest capital. He could remember the Prime Minister's wife playing the record as Cagalli and Kira sat on the sofa and listened to their mother's explanation to the importance of being able to appreciate a different nation's culture through the music that the exported to the foreign world. The music was haunting beautiful and sad, Kira's face registering the different notes that were drawn out, but Cagalli had made a face and said she found the music unpleasant and oddly depressing and not at all suitable to her palate and tastes. Kira had always been more musically inclined than his twin and he had shushed her as he tried to crane his neck towards the old gramophone to listen to the last lingering notes.

Athrun remembered that at the kind woman's funeral, the very song had been played as her casket was lowered into the damp earth, his hand wrapped around Cagalli's own hand with Kira at his side, and he remembered the face she had been making. She still had conserved a burning hatred towards the music from the Southern Federation and its cacophony of piano, bandoleers, and stringed instruments and her face was raw with tears. The notes were sobering as they were memorable of the woman that had worked hard as the First Lady of the nation. Cagalli's face was displeased and mussed as she buried her face into Athrun's ribs, refusing to watch the casket vanish within the hole in the ground. The record had never been played again and had been gathering dust on a shelf, seemingly forgotten and ignored but never trashed out of respect for the First Lady.

His hand pushed the door open and he gawked at the figure of Cagalli prancing around the room in a simple white sundress that she had seemed to have plucked from the laundry pile in her room, she herself having discarded her earlier wear. She had her back to him as she took a tentative step forward and backwards with her right foot, crossing her left foot in a semi-circular pattern, her bare toes dragging against the carpet. Her back was arched gracefully as she lifted her arm to the rhythm, letting it rest casually in the air as she twisted her hips slightly, changing the angling of her body. She had tied her hair up in a sloppy bun, much to his amusement, but he was much more interested in her taut concentration as she practiced the movement again, trying to mark the rhythm of the song that was dipping and twisting through complex notes on the bandoleer, she herself twisting in time to catch the lanky frame of her companion robot staring at her dumbly from the door.

"Sorry… erm… did I wake you?" She managed to produce as she lowered her arms and straightened her legs. Athrun shoot his head and she gave him a crooked smile as the red flush of her face complementing the rise and fall of her chest. "This… _looks_ weird, doesn't it? I sort of got an urge to listen to one of mama's old records after talking to Kira." Athrun's eyes were impassive as he slowly closed the door behind him and leaned against it, his head tilted as he regarded her with guarded eyes, trying to understand where this sudden necessity to dance to a hated record had originated. He knew that Cagalli knew how to dance the very basic ones for protocol and etiquette, but she was not moving through the basic steps of anything that he recognized as common dance.

"I used to _really_ hate this blasted record, but for some reason, it isn't so bad now," She mused as she shrugged at the blue haired man who was still watching her with a certain flicker dancing within the depths of his eyes. "Mama used to stay that this was music that highlighted the sadness, it lays bare the complexes and the strengths we hide from others… she said it was a 'sad thought' that was danced, but that it also touched the sadness, the pain, and the joy of life. I thought that was a rubbish explanation," She commented as her eyes stared down at her blasted feet that were still not free of the blisters but still she felt her body yearning to move and find the rhythm that accompanied the music.

"It sort of makes sense now and it made me sort of take for granted that I had an excellent childhood where tragedy was not necessarily knocking at the door every waking moment," Cagalli finished her explanation with another shrug as she sighed and leaned against the couch as she brushed a loose wisp of golden hair from her face. Her cheeks were still a lovely pinkish red and her form fit to the dress nicely, the flare of her hips hugged tastefully by the white material. Her profile was washed with the golden light that emitted from the free standing lamp and the shadows fell over her face, filling in the gaps and crevices where light did not reach.

Athrun pushed himself away from the door as he made his way over to her, stalking over the ground with his feline-like prowess that made Cagalli's nerves fray slightly as though she were being hunted. He was dressed in a comfortable sweater and form fitting black pants that he wore out of habit before Yuna had invaded their home. He despised that Cagalli had caved into Yuna's constant harassment of forcing Athrun to wear the white button up and khakis but once Cagalli told him that Yuna would not be there for the next few days, he had dug up his old clothes that were much more comfortable and pleasing to him. He drew up next to her, his height dwarfing her modest stature as he looked down at her, locking his green gaze with her fiery amber one.

"Have you finished your updates?" A nod was given to her and she smiled. "I hope Kira didn't put anything weird into your system…again." He made a face at her words but stepped away from her momentarily as he traced his steps back to the ancient gramophone that had been serving as a decoration as opposed to an actual used device. He reset the record so that it would start from the beginning, turning back to her and extending his right hand towards the Minister who was watching him with a mixed expression of bemusement and curiosity as her gaze switched from between his hand and his face. The music continued to play as it coloured the mood, the sultry notes seeming to move with the shadows on the wall.

"You want to dance?"

"That's the idea," He said simply, his expression unmoving as Cagalli allowed herself to reach out and take his hand. The staccato notes of the bandoleer marked the beginning of the song and Cagalli felt him slowly meld her body to his as the strings began to tease the music with their call-response notes before another lone violin seemed to break loose from the group and its strings wept another song. Cagalli was unsure as to how Athrun knew the steps to such a complex dance such as the tango but she allowed him to rest his hand on the small of her back, his presence guiding her through the seemingly jumbled dance as he stepped forward, leading her through he movements as he slowly shifted her body in his arms, drawing her even closer to him.

"You're not too bad." Her offhanded comment was met with a flicker of a smile as he twisted her away from him, never releasing his grasp on her as he then returned her back to his side and went to dip her carefully, mindful that her feet wwere still tender from the offensive stilletos. They took two precarious steps to the left, their legs and feet interlocking without ever touching as the music droned on in the background. Cagalli allowed herself to be dipped slightly as his hand shifted further up her back, caressing her mid back through the delicate fabric of her favourite sundress as he slowly moved them in a lazy circular motion, his feet guiding her in time to the erratic moving of the music.

Cagalli relaxed while Athrun moved them in a much more controlled pace that seemed to freeze them in time, casting them to their island of solitude where only the music was allowed to enter. His hand trailed back down her back and his fingers splayed across the small of her back as she gasped at the rawness of his movements that joined them together. The dance was as sad and beautiful as it was sensual and she could feel that warm coil stirring within her belly as she rested her chin lightly against his collar bone as he twisted them through another set of the eight step tango as the music changed pace once again. As she felt her body pressed against his in the shelter of his protective arms, it did not seem to matter that the decisions made in the next few hours would change their trajectory and how they lived. She for once had both eyes set in the present as opposed to one dwelling in the past and one leering at the future: for once she was truly immersed in the precious memory that was being twisted and formed as their bodies moved together.

As the music crescendoed aggressively, Athrun spun them around with his own pure momentum as he steadied her and gently lifted her from the floor, bringing her eye to eye with him. He had always been much taller than her and as she tried desperately to catch up to him in height, she realized that she would always been at least eighteen centimetres shorter than him because he was naturally built like a tower. She only came up to his collar bone on a good day without heels and it was very rare to be eye to eye with him on even levels. He curled his hand around the backs of her knees as he shifted her so that they were mere milimeters apart.

"I don't know if I can say that I love you as you understand it," He began slowly as he swayed their bodies back and forth slowly, rocking her gently. "But I cannot continue to exist without you." Cagalli squirmed in his arms but he held her steadily as he gauged her reactions to his impromptu vocalization of something that caught her off guard completely. She was shocked as she stared into his serene eyes that seemed oddly feral yet controlling as they were mesmerizing. He was simply observing her reactions as she processed the data that he had provided to her and was waiting for her to give in an appropriate response.

"I may be just a robot built for household tasks," Athrun said slowly. "But I want to be more for you if you permit me to be." She froze in her attempts to escape from him as she recalled Kira's conversation with her mere hours before. "I've been watching and learning from you for sixteen years and it may be a faulty error in my OS or it may be learned behaviour, but I wish to be with you as any human would—If you are to be taken from me, I calculate that I would not last much longer." His attempt at modestly trying to apologize for something that was spiralling out of control was a flat intent to lighten the situation but she was too dumbfounded by such a straightforward request from her normally phlegmatic companion.

"Athrun," She breathed as she felt her cheeks flush and the warmth in her belly spiralled as his gazed softened into something tender and gentle as he studied her face with his ever analytical eye. "You know that—"

"I am aware of the consequences," He interrupted softly. "I will pay them readily if it permits me to be with you—even if it's just for a short time." His face was closing in on hers and Cagalli felt her breathe taken from her as he gently caught her lips in a slow kiss that made that burning ache in her stomach flare up pleasantly and gurgle giddily as he slowly caressed her face with his free hand, brushing the messy freed strands of hair out of the way. He was delicate as he adjusted her to better his access to her as he steadily requested permission for her to allow him passage. Her lips parted willingly as he dove into the abyss, spurred on by something unseen to him and something that was as confusing as it was marvellous.

As though she were underwater and needed to reemerge for oxygen, she broke the delicate kiss that he had trapped her in and she felt her chest heaving against his much more solid one as he kept a cautious eye on her, the tension disappearing as she nodded and gently wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing herself even closer to the protective form of the humanoid robot that had declared himself before her in the typical stoic way that he would always behave. Her silent guardian, the one who had always knew exactly what to do to make her feel better or to even brighten her days, the one who sat with her and watched sunsets and rainstorms, the one who ambled down the hill with her towards the city market, the one who she leaned upon in her moments of exhaustion: all those memories bloomed in her mind like a fresh spring flower and she felt a moist sensation gathering in her eyes as she tried to dab them away, laughing softly into his shoulder as she rested her chin on the strong plain of muscle.

"Even if we pay them…" She knew that the affection that she had been harbouring for her long-time friend had been much more than a friendly basis and it was only in the last few months that she had become aware of how empty of a void her life could become if he was forced away from her. In the empty house that had once sheltered her brother, father, and mother he was the only one that stayed and kept the house alive and well for her sake. The fresh flowers that were her favourite, the constant stream of coffee to help her through the difficult mornings, and the constant eye for detail that seemed only conquerable by a non-human entity: Athrun had kept their house as a safe sanctuary for her as he waited for her arrival by the door every day.

"I promised that I would stay with you many years ago," He said thoughtfully as he lowered her to the ground but did not release his hold on her. "That promise has never been broken, has it?" It was a rhetorical question that she immediately knew the answer to as she nodded hesitantly. The robot smiled vaguely at her delicately as he brushed another strand of hair from her face. He had always been more than happy to ensure that his ward was safe and that she was content and it had been crushing his morale to see how the Prime Minister had left literal and metaphorical scars on the beautiful topography of her body. It had taken every inch of self control to not slash the man's throat on the spot the previous day but he knew that defying Cagalli's singular order would destroy him even more. Understanding that she was acting in the interest of protecting her protector was a bizarre concept but Athrun had tentatively accepted it as her own way of validating that she, too, was much more than just his charge.

"Humans are such fragile and confusing creatures," He murmured as he tugged her towards him, guiding her towards the door to the living room as he pulled it open quietly as to not stir the slumbering house from its well earned rest. "You're illogical, irrational, and impulsive—yet there are those who bleed empathy and acceptance." He did not look back at her as he slowly ferried her down the hallway and up the stairs, never letting her go from his grasp as he gently herded her into his own private quarters and domain where he knew that not even the Seiran-bastard would dare to enter.

"You're driven by emotion and are blinded by a false sense of security," Athrun continued to murmur as he shut the door with a quick jut of his hip and found himself whirling her around, slowly backing her up against said door, pinning her hands above her head with one hand, his face resting in the gentle juncture of her neck and chin, desperately trying to absorb the very warmth that he lacked but he sought as he tried to fly too close to the sun that was taboo. Her scent was divine to his hypersensitive nose, a gentle mix of citrus and lotus that were blending with the light sheen of sweat that was coating her skin in a lovely film for his eyes alone. The technology that had gone into him to be able to scent out dangerous chemicals in the air such as carbon monoxide seemed to carry a double edge and allowed him to indulge in scents that posed little threat to anything except their sanity.

"Humans are reckless as they are curious," He murmured as he pressed his human-like lips against the side of her neck, leaving a trail of soft kisses that spanned the entire plain of her long neck, her arms coming up to grasp at the back of his sweater, her fingers tangling in the fabric. "Yet you're absolutely thrilling to someone like me who exists for logic and sequences." His breath was against her skin and she moaned lightly as he ran another line of open mouthed kisses down her neck, his mouth dropping to her exposed collar bone.

"Everyday I have learned something from you, Cagalli," He rasped as he ran his other free hand up and down her side, fingers ghosting over the ribs and the soft fabric of her dress. The robot was just as real as any other man could be in that moment and Cagalli felt her walls crumble and break as he took her mouth again, trying to make her understand what was difficult for his kind to communicate because of the distance that ran between him and her. She did not skitter away from him nor did she resist as he willed her to comprehend the sensations she provoked within the cursed artificial body of his. "Every time he touched you, it was torture—he has no right. He _never_ has." She curled her fingers more into the fabric as he worked his way across her collarbone, rushed but glacial, as the eternal form that was the amicable robot allowed his guard to drop to nothing at the mercy of the blonde woman that stood before him. He felt their existences and their bare foundations eclipse as the unexplained magnetic pull of her threw his world into a tailspin as he boldly dashed across the very line that kept them separate but always within reach.

"I have learned and I want to keep learning," He whispered as he drew his mouth next to her ear, his words cradling the delicate shell of her outer ear as he continued to caress her body with the lightest of movements. His voice was uncensored as he let the words flow tranquilly from his mouth, his rare voice finally being used to a capacity that went beyond even his own expectations. He had grown comfortable with the occasional use of his voice but there was something that niggled at him to use it more for her benefit—a creature that responded just as well to auditory cues as she did to visual ones and often found great solace in the mere pleasure of hearing an utterance from him. His voice was a rarely used side of his expanse of tools and he found himself warming to the idea that it could be regular if it was just for her sake.

"Will you stay with me?" He groaned into her ear as she shifted against him, her body sliding into his as though they were built for one another. She was panting lightly as she tried to find the air in her lungs to respond to such a question proposed to her by what represented the longest form of stability that her life had maintained. Cursed with the misfortunate of immortality, she knew that forever would never be an option for them but she was not ignorant to the fleeting decisions that brought the small joys to life. As her body degraded, he would stand next to her as he had always done, observing how time withered her away into nothing as she would eventually find herself united with the Earth once more.

"Yes," She answered softly as she disregarded the consequences that she knew were destined to befall her. Cagalli realized that she had just signed herself away to a bizarre strange world that even she knew would be difficult to navigate as the turmoil grew stronger and much more vicious. A voracious tugging at her heart for the humanoid robotic man confirmed that her lingering feelings were justified yet she heard the roaring in her head as she knew that the next day or so would be the pivotal moment that defined or broke down the boundaries that set her apart from her fiancé.

There were no words required as her head tilted backwards, the crown of her golden mane touching the wall as she felt him familiarize himself with the geography of her body, his touches fleeting but gentle and coaxing as he he felt their bodies meld together into a continous map that they thought they had known so well but found that they were discovering new unchartered territory. Entrapped within the very essence that separated them as much as it unified them, he felt intoxicated by her virginal reactions as they were innocent and authentically hers. If he had to take what he had dialled into other robots' chatters, he would say that they had laid a foundation of expectation and he was magnifying the magnificence of it all as he felt her shudder when he grazed his hands against a particular spot.

He slowly pulled them away from the wall, never relinquishing his grasp on her, and he slowly backed them up until he curled her body into his, his own falling against the bed with her resting on top of him. As she pushed herself up onto her arms and looked down into his solemn face that was tinged with admiration and adoration for such a curious specimen of human, she felt that she needed to have him invade every crevice of her life or she would simply vanish from the human plain forever. His eyes were much softer than she had ever seen as he reached up and wrapped a sturdy arm around her lower back, a silent promise that would only serve to strengthen the bond between the two opposites that were their lives.

" _Stay_ ," He crooned once again and she relented, unable to deny him and his request that was laced with such a flurry of rawness that one would never expect from a robot. She felt the straps of her simple dress slipping from her shoulders but she did not move to adjust them, Cagalli herself surrendering herself to the very situation that they skated on as she felt him slowly roll them over, his mouth running down the sloping of her neck once more as he continued his expedition to get to know the woman that he shown him only kindness and compassion. His lips were lethal, Cagalli decided, as she gasped as his mouth closed over a particularly sensitive area on her body and she arched into his much more powerful and wonderfully artificial body that captured the perfect image of man into one existence, her hands grasping at him as he continued his gentle ministrations on her unworthy self.

The minutes of agonizing pleasure melted into what seemed to be an infinite loop as they ascended and came crashing down, the primal sounds that Cagalli produced spurring Athrun to expose her to the physical manifestation of his affection and love for her. She felt powerless beneath him as he moved against her yet she felt secure and wonderfully safe as he filled her with his entire existence, strong coils of muscle rippling as he held her close to him, unwilling to reach the peak unaccompanied as her gasps ripped through the air and he grit his teeth in the kaleidoscope of colours that washed over them.

As he blinked down at her, his dark blue hair plastered to his forehead in the strange sort of endearing way that Cagalli hoped to repeat, she reached up and traced the angles of his cheeks, her fingers brushing the hair from his alert eyes as she smiled up at his softly, tears in her eyes. Her amber orbs were much more alive than he had seen in years and he felt the passionate spirit of what had been the precious little girl banging against her metaphorical cage as she felt freedom was within grasp. There was a certain look of awe that painted her face as she continued her soft touching of his face, running the pads of her fingers as she stared him in the eye through her own misty gaze, the golden pools of defiance and unbridled spirit challenging his much more reserved gaze as he gently smiled, pressing his lips to hers once again as he slowly removed himself from her body, taking up residence next to Cagalli.

"That was…" She murmured as she breathed through her teeth, her body covered in a light filmy sheen of sweat as she gazed at him, unwilling to look away in case it were to all disappear in a moment.

"Rest," He said softly as he dragged the light blanket at the foot of his bed and draped it over her carefully.

"But.." She protested as she let her complaint die out as he gave her a delicate kiss on the temple.

"I will be here," He said calmly as he gently ran his fingers over her belly. " _Rest_." She nodded at him tiredly although the mildly goofy smile on her face was the indication of how she was love-drunk off of him. Athrun's presence was enough to lull her into a satiated slumber as her eyes finally closed, her breathing evening off as the robot studied her carefully in the gentle light that filtered in through the curtains. How his manmade existence had ever come to merit the lioness of a woman curled up next to him was not something that could be answered with logic and sequencing as his life was seemingly dictated by complexities such as those. Even so, he felt opiated off the high that he had risen to with the blonde and felt smitten as he was torn between staying awake and watching over her or allowing himself to emulate the behaviour of sleep and the pleasure of waking next to her in the first rays of the morning sun.

 _Warm,_ He mused as he realized that everything his body was manifesting was a foreign warmth that he had only felt in small spurts over the last sixteen years but had suddenly filled his body. The burning was subtle but it did not feel unpleasant as he drew her closer to him, nesting his face into her shoulder as he listened to her breathing shallowly in her comfortable sleep.

* * *

A bubbly giggle filled the air as the pink haired songstress sipped delicately at the tea that Cagalli had brewed for her upon showing up at her doorstep the following morning. The insistence that pounded at the doorbell had spooked Cagalli from her sleep and had sent Athrun into defensive mode as he threw on his pants and stalked down the hallway, his sensors trying to read who was able to creep around the security system that he had activated around the sanctuary. As he opened the door swiftly and was met with the matching curious and annoyingly knowing stares of Kira and Lacus, he felt his guard slide back into place as he stepped aside and allowed the married couple to pass, shutting the door behind them.

Cagalli appeared at the head of the stairs, she herself having thought to grab some leggings and a baggy sweater to throw on, and blinked owlishly at the presence of her sister-in-law and brother who gawked at the blonde with an oddly smug air about them. As she took the stairs in two, racing down to meet her family, she noticed that Athrun had slipped into the adjoining room to avoid even more hawkish stares at his bare chested form that spoke volumes in absolute silence in regards to what had occurred the previous evening.

Lacus had playfully tapped Cagalli's shoulder before wrapping her into a warm embrace, having been informed of the details by Kira in the car ride over to the Minister's house, and Cagalli relaxed as she returned the hug. Kira was watching the two females with a careful look as Cagalli was tugged back upstairs by Lacus, her bubblegum pink hair fanning out behind her as she insisted that Cagalli take a shower and Lacus would braid her hair. His twin looked like she wanted to protest but Lacus' gentle pushing into the bathroom was more than enough to get the blonde to subside any complaint that had formed in her throat.

Kira shook his head, amazed that his wife's antics were charmingly innocent and almost sinister at the same time, and he turned his gaze to the room that he had watched Athrun vanish into while the girls had been conversing. He removed his shoes, out of habit, kicking them to the side as he slowly passed under the doorway of the living room to find Athrun staring out the window with a firm grimace plastered on his face. Kira had adored Athrun in a brotherly way as he grew up and that admiration had bloomed into a healthy respect and gratefulness that he held for very few. The robot was silent as he gave no indication of recognizing Kira's presence but knew that he had entered the room.

"How are things, Athrun?" Kira asked silently as he gently slid the door shut. Athrun did not turn to look at the brunette but he could imagine the thoughts that circulated through the bluette's head at hundreds of kilometres per hour. Kira slowly drew up next to the robot that had presided over a fair amount of his childhood as well and he, too, took to staring out the window at the family garden. The bench was unoccupied, the flowers bending in the light breeze that seemed to pass over the hill, and the trees whistled quietly as they seemed to await the answer that Kira knew Athrun would be able to confirm.

"I've been worried about Cagalli since I've moved away," Kira continued, knowing that he would have to coax Athrun to speak at some point. "Yuna is not someone I care to be around and I know the trappings of the legal arrangement of the marriage don't leave a lot of wiggle room for Cagalli to try and escape." His eyes narrowed at the thought of the Prime Minister that had left his oozing and horrid mark on the epitome of what had been his childhood home. He could not determine Athrun's reaction because the robot refused to meet his gaze but he knew that Athrun probably held the same rancour towards the idiot politician that had intruded upon his and Cagalli's space.

"Knowing that you have been here to watch over her gave me some peace of mind, but there's something that bothers me about the situation that Cagalli will not tell me but more or less confirmed to me over the telephone last night," Kira's voice lowered as he turned his stare back to the bench that was firmly cemented to the ground. "What happens behind closed doors with politicians is not my cup of tea, obviously, but knowing that Cagalli has been silent to her suffering with you here— _why_?" Athrun's emerald gaze slid over to Kira's face as the brunette frowned angrily into the reflective glass of the window. "Why haven't you done anything? I know for a fact you would have probably killed him the moment you caught him.

"I watched you two a lot when I was growing up and there's a lot of fondness that you have for my sister," Kira continued as he felt his mind transport back to various moments in time when he would catch Athrun and Cagalli seemingly caught up in their own private world. There were images of Cagalli curled up against Athrun in the garden, or the two of them sitting together in the living room, engrossed in their own literature in a comfortable silence, amongst other fragments of memories. Kira had, at first, felt light animosity for monopolizing Athrun's time, but as he aged he began to realize that it was Cagalli's manner and treatment towards the robot that made him a permanent fixture to her presence. He and Athrun got on fine but he could tell that the humanoid bluette was much more attached to his blonde twin who seemed blissfully unaware of the whole situation.

"That's why I can't believe that you have let whatever is happening in this house get to the level that it has," Kira rounded off his slight accusation as folded his arms behind him and rested his forehead against the glass. "Cagalli would do anything to protect you and it was after speaking to her last night that I realized that she more than likely had ordered you not to act in the interest of protecting you, correct?" His violet eyes were glazed as he trained his stare on the form of the robot that was still quiet as he processed Kira's words.

"Did she?" Kira probed, to which Athrun nodded slowly.

"She wouldn't let you touch Seiran knowing that it would be the end of you," Kira confirmed slowly to which Athrun tilted his head in hesitant recognition. He knew that the brunette was much more perceptive than his twin sister and he knew that Kira would probably have a harsh conversation with her that would escalate quickly. The robot sighed as he peeled himself away from the window as he sat down on the sofa, folding his hands together and bowing his head to stare at the carpet below his feet. He could still see the indents from where he and Cagalli had lost themselves in the seductive dance the night before and he narrowed his eyes.

"It is the first time she has ordered me to do something," Athrun finally spoke, startling Kira who was still quite unused to the robot's voice. "She is worried that Yuna would have me decommissioned and destroyed the moment I were to intervene." Kira nodded slowly as grit his teeth together in coarse thought, cursing the lavender haired idiot that had waltzed into his sister's life and began to yank her to and fro like a puppet. Cagalli was intelligent in her own right and brilliant as a politician but Yuna knew that her attachment to the robot would be the trump card to promise and solidify his control over his sister.

"A plausible situation," Kira agreed tersely. "Yuna has the cards stacked in his favour and he's known that since the start—bastard that he is—and he knows that it's just a waiting game at this point." The brunette sighed heavily as he ran over the options that he and his sister had tossed back and forth over the phone but knew that they were limited and did not provide the easiest solutions or end well.

"You would do anything for her," Kira stated as though he was stating that the sky was blue. It was a frank and direct comment but Athrun found no disagreement with it. The robot would have killed Yuna on the spot given the chance but had only withheld the temptation knowing that it was Cagalli who had requested him to do so. It was a thorn in the side of the situation and it seemed to be being driven deeper and deeper into the delicate flesh of what was a potential solution.

"Yuna is supposed to return tomorrow afternoon in theory," Kira said with a sigh as he turned back to the window. "I really wish that you would at least consider coming to stay with Lacus and me for a while—at least until we can figure out a legal way of getting her away from Yuna. Laws are laws but there's always a lot of interpretation to them…" He shrugged heavily as he exhaled again. "But Cagalli will refuse because she knows it is a big risk for us." Athrun was silent as he mulled over Kira's words, his mind trained on the woman he had pledged himself to the previous evening as they had joined together and soared through the heavens.

"I had joked that you two should elope," Kira said with a chortle as he snorted. "It's a win-win: it would nullify Yuna's engagement to her and you would be able to stay with her no matter what. It's just a silly joke, but even jokes sometimes make more sense than the reality." Athrun's fingers twitched at the mention of elopement with the blonde and while he did not object to the idea, he knew it went beyond taboo and crossed into a different realm than that of their union.

"Cagalli even mentioned the border towns where they tend to ignore the laws," Kira continued to mutter absently to himself as he closed his eyes to the familiar living room that housed many precious memories that he feared would be erased by the Seiran's intrusion. "She even went as far as mentioning that the clerks at the Courthouse where they draw up the paperwork for such high profile marriages have not obligated her to sign anything as of yet. Which makes me question the legitimacy of the engagement to begin with since she technically never signed anything…" The twin grunted as he watched Athrun's unmoving form in the reflective glass window.

"It's a complete violation of the National Statute of Human Rights and Robot Relations and would probably be brought up in the court of law as federal crime and perhaps international if it reaches the international organizations' attention," Kira whispered. "She's trapped—even if she didn't sign a paper, Yuna holds way too many cards in his hand for this to be a clean cut sort of situation. We've checked with other lawyers but most don't want to get involved if it's against Seiran."

"If she asked me to, I would kill him," Athrun finally spoke.

"You know she won't do that," Kira said with a flicker of a sad smile. "As badly as he treated her, she would never let you." Kira felt his heart part in two for his twin as he realized that this may be the first time that he or Athrun would be unable to come to her aid. Kira had explored many avenues to try and find some way to wiggle his sister free from the grasp of the Prime Minister and had drawn nothing that would be considered feasible. Athrun, on the other hand, was constrained by the fact that Cagalli had ordered him not to act, effectively throwing up a barricade that would cover both their interests. It was a frustrating never ending chase that would cease and leave many lives broken on the floor.

* * *

"How was visiting back home?" Cagalli inquired as Lacus busied herself with separating Cagalli's hair into neat strands, calculating that she could form two lovely french braids in the blonde's hair. Lacus had shoved Cagalli into the bathroom with a knowing look but gave her a tepid smile that seemed to balm the effect of the morning after as she closed the door and instructed Cagalli to have a nice shower before they spoke.

"It's always lovely to go back," Lacus replied with a hearty sigh. "It's not the same but immigrating here was much easier than trying to take Kira back. But those visits to see family and friends are quite needed from time to time." Cagalli gave a slight nod as she stared at their reflections in the mirror, Lacus' humming in her throat the gentle reprieve from the silence of the Minister's room.

"I'm sure that the quiet was quite agreeable with you," Cagalli offered waywardly as she winced as Lacus began to thread the strands of hair together into a tight yet neat braid.

"Perhaps it was," Lacus tutted. "But it was just a visit home. I think you yourself are in need of some peace and quiet after everything that's been happening." Her face was calm as she continued to braid the blonde Minister's hair and Cagalli fell into a mum silence. "Kira told me about your phone conversation last night."

It was not flashing news to Cagalli; she had expected her brother to immediately tell his wife about their conversation and had been mentally prepared to tackle the issue head on with the pink haired songstress. Her brother had never been one to keep secrets from his wife and she had anticipated that at some point she would have seen Lacus in the near future because the woman was too kind hearted to let Cagalli roll around in her own misery. Lacus' conduct and personality were conducive to maintaining order and tranquility even under the most tense of situations and it was not the first time she found herself staring down the proverbial barrel of Lacus' gun.

"I'm aware that you wish to protect Athrun from your fiancé's wrath as well as any actions that can be taken against him," Lacus murmured gently as she rearranged some golden strands before continuing the braid being woven into Cagalli's hair. "I also am aware that you wish to continue with your father's legacy in the attempts to restore the country to what it had been prior to the Prime Minister assuming power: you still believe in diplomacy and international collaboration and avoiding military conflict when possible. When Kira posed the solution of him leaking to the press that your home situation is not ideal, he also told me that your immediate reaction was to protect him and myself from repercussions.

"You've always had an admirable selflessness to you, Cagalli," Lacus continued as she tied off one end of a braid before proceeding onto the next one. "You've always put anyone else's needs before your own and have carried that from your father's legacy to even the most mundane of tasks. The country has come first for you, your family, and so many others. Perhaps it is time to take a selfish decision for the first time in your life and not worry about how many feet you may step on in the process." The pinkette was gently frank with her words as she tried to worm her way into Cagalli's tunnel vision of trying to do things as cleanly as possible without bringing burden on others when she had shouldered so much herself over the years.

"Peace cannot be obtained when your mind is clouded," Lacus commented.

"I've had a lot to think about over the last few days," Cagalli muttered darkly to which Lacus smiled in acknowledgement. "It's just got too many complex layers for it to make complete sense for me."

"Does it have to make complete sense?"

" _Sorry_?" Cagalli's eyes met Lacus' in the mirror.

"Nothing has to ever been one-hundred percent clear, especially when it deals with your own emotions," Lacus replied softly. "We cannot always have all the facts and figures to decide what is best for ourselves. Sometimes you have to decide and then do something about it. Instead of being stagnant and not moving forward, you will always just have the same options. Sometimes moving the game pieces yourself can change the playing field." Her smile faded from her face as she tied off the other braid and rested her hands on Cagalli's shoulder. "I cannot make you do anything, Cagalli, but if this is the one selfish decision you are going to make in your life, waiting will not solve anything." Her eyes were soft and non judgement but her mouth was pressed into a thin line on her face.

"Do you know what you want?"

"What I want?" Cagalli echoed as she reached up and ran her fingers over the neat ridges of the braids.

"What you want," Lacus affirmed.

Cagalli leaned back in the chair as she sighed, wrapping her arms around her frame momentarily as she tilted her head to the side and regarded herself in the mirror. Lacus had let her change back into her comfortable leggings and sweater that engulfed her body. It was a comfortable outfit that allowed her to have full mobility and freedom to move around unrestricted. She could see the irony of using those words to consider her garments and relate them to her current situation. Lacus was correct that Cagalli often took the general wellbeing of everyone into her decision making—as she had tried to emulate her father—and she knew that that bit of gratification of helping the majority would be skipped in this decision as she would be able to decide for herself as she sighed to herself before looking back up at Lacus.

"Are you free this afternoon?"

Lacus' smile returned and widened as the blonde began to formulate a plan.

* * *

(A/N:) Oh boy, we're entering into the last three or four chapters. This little guy has been on the backburner in favour of my other fic, Vestige, which I encourage you guys to read for a more fantasy and magical world type scenario.

Writing citric based material is always fun but giving it an extra flair is just as rewarding. Once again, I don't own the characters, I just use them for other things. Don't forget to review!


	8. Chapter 8

Protocol

Stage VIII: Decision

'The road to heaven begins in the pits of hell.'

* * *

Cagalli sat stiffly in the back of the car, squeezed deftly between Miriallia and Lacus, Shinnn at the driver's wheel sitting next to Lunamaria, with Athrun and Kira trailing them a few cars back. It had taken a quick assortment of hectic phone calls, Lacus calling Miriallia and requesting that she arrive to the house within the hour, Cagalli muttering apologies for bothering Shinnn on a weekend but said she would owe him a massive favour of his selection if he was able to help them. Miriallia had been the first to arrive, followed by Shinnn and his on-and-off again girlfriend, Lunamaria who had been summoned as a willing witness.

After hatching and pitching her solution to Lacus, Cagalli had bounded down the stairs and ran into her brother and Athrun sitting in the living room with matching gloomy expressions as they regarded her with puzzled eyes, unsure as to how she could be so energetic in such a critical moment. Cagalli's chest puffed out as she marched over to the sofa and plopped herself down between the two men and took a hand from each one, squeezing them reassuringly. She had been breathless for a spell as she tried to best construct her explanation as Lacus wandered into the room and sat down primly on the other end of the sofa, her face decorated with a satisfied smile.

"I've decided what we're going to do," Cagalli finally mustered the words as she released their hands once and rested them on her knees. "I'm going to need some consent and cooperation, _but_ …" She trailed off as she gazed at Athrun who was watching her with a curious stare that seemed apprehensive as to what she was able to utter. The robot knew that whatever Lacus had said to his cherished human may have been the catalyst to the normally rational blonde and he was itching to see what had whipped her into such a thick frenzy.

"We cannot take you out of the country considering you cannot request a passport," Cagalli began as she wrung her hands nervously. "That makes fleeing difficult and nearly impossible unless we smuggle you across a border, which I don't think would sit well with the neighbouring countries. We cannot march down to the capital Courts and request documents to allow us to be married in order to null the declaration of engagement between Yuna and I given that the courts would not recognize it and would probably throw it away when they realize it's against the National Statute of Human Rights and Robot Relations. That's a no go—and we can't get married through the church because they're staunchly anti-everything."

"Cagalli— _the point_ ," Her brother said firmly as he felt himself catch the infectious energy of his twin and felt beads of sweat pooling at his hairline.

"The _point_ is, I have not signed anything to legally bind myself to Yuna or to ensure that our engagement is truly legal on paper and consensual," Cagalli retorted with a snort. "We're engaged by word of mouth—but _not_ on paper. And according to the laws that were re-written at the beginning of his term: it's not valid in any sort of way because of the scandals with national budgeting being rooted in oral agreements and then not working out in the old government. I'd have to ask Yzak to verify that, but I'm _nearly_ sure that our engagement holds no water."

"So why would you mention marriage documents?" Kira asked in a puzzled voice as Athrun slowly rested a reassuring hand on Cagalli's shoulder. His bright green eyes were alert as he digested her words as his brain tried to sequence her plan of action, his own feet running down the same path that Cagalli was opening up forcefully to ensure that her bases were covered.

"By having documents showing that I'm married or due to be married to someone, Yuna cannot have any claim over me because his claim to engagement not documented and verbal agreements are not valid," Cagalli explained. "And there's no better place to do it on the border in the province that has remained fairly autonomous from Yuna's party this entire time." Kira's eyes widened as he shot his violet stare to regard the robot who looked shocked and perplexed yet seemingly resolute with Cagalli's harebrained antics as he brought the blonde closer to him out of habit. "Even if Athrun does not have a passport, he does have an ID because all civilian and non-civilian robots are required to carry them by law. Getting marriage papers in another province that loathes Yuna's cabinet and actions is a protective measure: their premier has made it quite clear that robots are welcomed in her province and has unilaterally decided to ignore the National Statute of Human Rights and Robot Relations and its reformations. It's being debated in the House, but she's been able to hold them off for now."

"So if you are married in a province…"

"It's still recognized at a national level despite whatever political spat they're having," Lacus finished as she crossed her arms and tilted her head in thought. "A judge or court officer can outright deny you, but once accepted, it has to go through the registry of that province. If anything, it buys a bit more time for Yzak to find more loopholes that work in our favour. Although we might be intentionally adding a layer of complexity to it that is unwarranted and will probably annoy him."

"Correct," Cagalli said with a nod. "By marrying someone else legally, it effectively blocks his claim to our engagement. It's a bit of a nightmare with the National Statute of Human Rights and Robot Relations being enforced, but if we can push it through the right channels using my father's supporters, we may just be able to get around it. _Barely_ , but we might be able to." Kira sank back into the sofa as his eyes stared up at the ceiling momentarily before he dragged his gaze over to his sister who seemed lost in thought as her amber eyes swirled with something he'd not witnessed in a long time.

"Who's the contact?"

"Murrue Ramius," Lacus replied automatically. "She's always been a reasonable woman in the political scene and is not always the first one to adhere to the laws written in books. I've had a few encounters with her at cultural events and she's always been a gracious individual."

"I've worked extensively with her network of secretaries and connections here in the capital," Miriallia remarked as she shifted on the sofa and folded her hands together in passive pensiveness. "She is a premier that tends to work on more moral grounds as opposed to adhering to laws. She's quite popular in her province and her secretaries speak nothing but highly of her and her defiance towards the Seirans."

Shinn had been standing off to the side, leaning in the doorframe, as his blood red stare settled over the group before he reached into his pocket and jingled the keys to his personal vehicle. All eyes lifted to regard the slouched figure of the young man who seemed impatient to get the ball rolling as he eyed them with the same intense stare reserved for the more ornery government workers that seemed to grace his vehicle en route to government functions.

"I don't know what we're all sitting around for," He blurted out with a harsh bluntness to his voice. "If we want to make it in time, we gotta get moving now." The group of seven moved quickly through the house, grabbing their discarded shoes, Kira cursing for not filling up his own car with gas to which Cagalli offered him her own personal vehicle that sat idly in the garage. Athrun locked up the house and activated the extensive security network around the sanctuary before he climbed gracefully into the car with Kira.

The brunette turned over the engine as the sharp looking sedan roared to life and he angled the car so that he was able to tail after Shinn's much larger vehicle. The four women had piled into Shinn's car, despite Kira requesting that Lacus travel with him, but he abandoned the argument upon realizing that perhaps his wife's presence would help to calm the storm that was Cagalli's emotional turmoil. As they merged onto the highway that connected the provinces that rested on the heated border area. Athrun was quiet as he seemed to have slipped into his stand by mode and Kira relished the moment of peace as he flicked through the radio calmly and settled for a station that played classical music.

He knew that his twin sister was in a turbulent state and she was attempting to mask her anxiety with her stiff face that was often the same one used when addressing the parliament. She was clever and knew how to think on her toes effectively but he knew that after a certain point, her quick wit and perceptiveness would ultimately be tested by the factors that lingered just out of her reach. Cagalli was well loved in their tight knit group and Kira was willing to stake a significant sum that Athrun kept a close eye on her and monitored her moods, her motions, and her activities to ensure that she was not exhausting herself. Kira was aware that Cagalli was suited for the political arena of the massive circus that was running a country but her ability to govern effectively had been flipped on its head when Yuna was introduced into the picture.

Kira glanced at the nearly dormant form of Athrun that rested beside him in the passenger seat and felt his lips curl up in a mild smile. The robot could easily pass off as a human and there was something exceptional to his way of conduct and interacting with organic life forms that made him an oddity amongst already complex machines. Kira had become more or less aware that the robot was much more drawn to Cagalli when the twins had turned sixteen and he had immortalized the image of the two of them resting on the familiar bench. He at first had found it bizarre that something inorganic had taken such an organic and human affection to his twin yet it soon passed as he realized that it was benign and that the android would not harm his only sibling. There was a certain grace to Athrun's smile as Cagalli moaned about over eating too many sweets and the way his arm was wrapped around her protectively that struck Kira as different. He and Athrun got along well and there was a certain brotherly affection that he held for the android, but his twin had unintentionally conquered what was supposed to be a cold and indifferent existence and had wiggled her way into his existence.

Lacus had once commented, upon meeting Athrun and Cagalli for the first time, that she had mistaken Athrun for another organic human life form and she had blinked in realization when Kira had been shaking his head at her assumption. The pinkette had been invited to the family house, when Kira was still living there, and had found Cagalli and Athrun sitting at the kitchen table together. Athrun seemed to be toying with a computer and Cagalli was pouring over some paperwork, a warm cup of coffee sitting by her elbow. They were huddled together, despite the generous size of the table, and they seemed to have a familiarity and trust to allow each other to invade each other's personal spaces with such ease. She was amazed that they seemed to meld together like an old married couple, Athrun occasionally casting Cagalli a fond look before resuming with his own tasks.

In the car that was speeding along a few lengths ahead, Cagalli was quiet as she stared down at her pale hands as Lacus, Shinn, Lunamaria, and Miriallia maintained a brisk conversation. She could barely focus on the words that filled the car and she could not bring herself to look out the window at the landscape that whizzed by them, her own thoughts outpacing the ever climbing needle on the speedometer. Shinn had glanced up at her in the rear-view mirror but had not said anything but she saw the look of begrudging concern that had darted across his youthful face. Lunamaria had craned around in her seat and addressed Lacus' question immediately about the area, Lacus never having fully explored the country, and they laughed at some trivial detail that flew over Cagalli's head.

"We're about an hour away," Miriallia remarked as she looked at the GPS that was perched on the dash and she leaned back, her shoulder brushing Cagalli's. "I've already contacted Murrue via one of her secretaries and she's agreed to meet us at the Provincial Palace."

"Oh, that's wonderful," Lacus said softly as she reached over gently and took one of Cagalli's motionless hands in her own. "I had a feeling that Ms. Ramius would be reasonable about this." Cagalli mustered a quick nod as she lifted her head to meet Lacus' soft eyes.

"How are you feeling?" Lunamaria inquired as she tilted her head at the blonde Minister. "This all feels quite exciting, really."

"I'm not sure how to put it into words," Cagalli finally spoke. "There's a lot of things on my mind, I suppose." Lacus and Miriallia exchanged mild looks of concern over the top of Cagalli's head but the pinkette squeezed Cagalli's hand reassuringly in reminder that she was not taking this journey alone but was rather accompanied by a group of individuals who had decided to take it upon themselves to aid her in this quest.

"I think you're making the right decision," Shinn spoke as he looked in the mirror once again. "It might not be the smartest one, but it's the right one." The women quieted themselves as they cast their eyes on Shinn who was drumming his fingers against the steering wheel. "Listen, I hate Seiran just as much as anyone in this car, and I'll be damned if he gets his way with Cagalli. She's the only damned person that has any idea of how to fucking run the country. I hate that weasel-faced bastard and what he's done." Cagalli bit her lip as she processed Shinn's harsh words, knowing that the young man came from a troubled background in the backwater provinces that had always held contempt for the Seiran. There was a certain air of egoistical rancour tucked away within his words that he had wrapped in the guise of supporting Cagalli, but the Minister could not fault him for such thoughts.

"I agree whole heartedly," Lacus said quietly. "This is not the cleanest or most organized course of action, but it is the proper path to walk if it is the one you wish to forge, Cagalli." Her sister-in-law regarded her with bright golden orbs as the pink-haired songstress allowed her lips to form into a warm smile that held no judgement for the blonde's rash decision. "You have a willing companion and our support. Please do not fret too much or overanalyze the situation. Awareness of the consequences, yes, but a constant over analysis of everything is far from productive."

"I know," Cagalli said stiffly as she pushed her shoulders into the back of the seat. "There's just a sneaking sensation that something will go wrong."

"We'll cross that bridge if we get to it," Miriallia interrupted as she gave Cagalli a knowing look. "You've got four people in this car and two in another that are on your side. Let us worry about certain things while you focus on what you have to do to get away from that asshole." The other three supporters in the car nodded in vigorous agreement at the secretary's words and Cagalli exhaled with a crooked smile.

" _Thank you_ ," She whispered, to which Lacus squeezed her hand once more.

* * *

"I hear that these are quite trying circumstances, Minister," Murrue Ramius said thoughtfully as she stirred her tea absentmindedly, the milk swirling and mixing with the black tea. The premier was a kindly older woman who had ushered them into the provincial palace with a behaviour similar with a mother hen that clucked at the chicks that were dragging behind. She had requested a private audience with Cagalli and Athrun and had allowed the rest to retire to rooms that were used to house visitors to the province on official business. Lacus had opened her mouth to protest but Kira had shook his head and guided her down the hallway, the pinkette glancing over her shoulder at the shrinking forms of the Minister, the premier, and the android that watched her retreat from their sight.

Murrue had invited them into her private office as she requested one of the staff to prepare some tea and bring some biscuits, the maid saluting her cheerfully as she exited the office and returned within minutes. The two politicians were sitting face to face and Athrun was lingering behind Cagalli, his green stare alert as he regarded Murrue with a passive interest and tuned into their conversation as he analyzed words. The two women spoke briefly about national business, Cagalli commenting that she was impressed with the province's growth in terms of economics and industry and Murrue remarking that it was a labour of love between herself and her cabinet. They smiled and nodded at each other as they settled into what they knew best: the art of political discussion as they heeded the other's words, pausing occasionally to sip on their tea.

"Now that we've gotten the business end of things taken care of," Murrue began as she leaned back in her plush chair and crossed her arms on her desk. "Tell me, what exactly can I do to be of service to you?" Her gaze was amicable and there was no hostility to her personality as she defined perfectly what it meant to be a reasonably balanced individual. There was an underlying hint that she had a slight inkling as to why they would be knocking at her door, a prominent member of a well defined opposition to the current government, and she braced herself accordingly.

"As we spoke on the phone briefly, you understand that the engagement between myself and the Prime Minister is invalid given that it is an oral agreement but without any written consent that is the truly binding agreement in terms of legality in accordance with national legislation—regardless of the citation of older law that has not been revised or updated," Cagalli began as she tightened her fists that rested on her knees. "The truth of the matter, and I feel as though you are aware of Yuna Roma Seiran's character, is a forced engagement for political gain is a dirty attempt at trying to secure his power and permanency within the government as the Prime Minister. However, it's the complete violation of outstanding modern law that both consenting parties must be signatory and I've never signed anything."

"So there's no validity or written consent to your engagement on your part," Murrue said thoughtfully as she pressed her fingers together. "And you are relying on the fact that my province opposes the Prime Minister's policies and votes against him to be able to try and circumvent the registry in your province knowing that it will be recognized in mine." The brunette gave Cagalli a quizzical look as though expecting there to be significantly more in terms of details. "I'm not incorrect, am I?"

"You've got it," Cagalli muttered.

"You also are aware that there is much more acceptance and tolerance towards robot-human relations in my province as well as the fact that we were one of the four provinces that voted 'no' on the new laws with regards to relationships between robots and humans," Murrue continued as she reached for her tea and took a careful sip. "You're playing a very dangerous political game with your potentially illegitimate fiancé and you're wrangling us into an even much more precarious position than we're already in. Prime Minister Seiran owes us no favours and often seeks to complicate things in our little corner of the country."

"I'm aware that this may have consequences on a political level, but I have exhausted my options," Cagalli countered as she gave the premier a sullen look. "I'm more than aware that Yuna is not afraid to dirty his hands for his own benefit. I can assure you that, despite whatever problems it would bring, it would bring more if our marriage is to happen. I'm not sure if you've heard the rumours from your secretaries, but I would be removed from my position in the Ministry and lose any political influence—well, what's left of it. Any sort of support for your province from my corner of the government would vanish immediately."

"My, my, that would be a problem," Murrue clucked her tongue as she cast her warm gaze on Athrun who was standing attentively behind Cagalli. "I am not against marrying you two and processing the paperwork through the registry here, but I want you two to truly think about the consequences of doing so before committing to an arguably taboo act in the eyes of many. Despite the tolerance and integration of humanoids here, I cannot begin to fathom the backlash you will be taking on. There is also no security in saying that you will maintain your position as a Minister—if anything, it sees like grounds for your dismissal from the cabinet." Murrue sighed as she gave Cagalli a sympathetic smile.

"I'm not outright saying no, but I would request that you please reconsider your options carefully," She added on briskly. "I am an avid supporter of you and your father, Minister, and would like to ensure that any chance of the legacy left behind is preserved for the good of the nation. It puts my province and myself in a difficult bind. I am willing to stick my neck out for you, but I want you to make the decision with absolute certainty. You're not just requesting this of myself but of my province's citizens. They, too, will have to suffer consequences if this backfires."

"I understand," Cagalli relented. "I apologize for exploiting your province's political stance for such a selfish request—it is the least admirable thing that I can admit to doing. I will honour your request for my careful consideration of any decision made here."

"Yes, well, sometimes these situations demand a bit more creativity," Murrue remarked lightly as she tilted her head at Cagalli's apology. "It is quite the political ball you've thrown on my roof, but I will do my best to accommodate your decision as best as possible." Cagalli nodded as she looked up at Athrun whose face remained impassive.

"Please take the afternoon to rest and you can give me your decision after dinner," Murrue said softly as she rose to her feet, prompting Cagalli to rise as well. The two women shook hands as Athrun supervised their exchange with a careful hawklike gaze. "I will see you two at dinner, please, do rest and think over things properly."

* * *

Cagalli hummed to herself as she sunk deeper into the water of the bathtub in the lavish bathroom that was adjoined to the room that she was sharing with Mirellia, who was sitting in the lush gardens and snacking on some regional sweets with the others. Athrun had gently prodded her and herded her towards the bathroom, his way of insisting that she relax and take the edge off by allowing herself the luxury of a warm bath before dinner. He had shoved various fluffy towels into her arms and reached over to open the tabs, the tub filling with steamy water as he exited the bathroom. She was unsure if he was lingering around in their shared accommodation or if he had gone to seek out he twin, but she took advantage of the opportunity to loosen her muscles beneath the rippling water.

Her mind was wandering as she replayed the memories from the last few days and she felt her cheeks warm at the sensation of Athrun's hands running over her body with such tender motions. She had been unsure what to expect from such intimacy and although it had been slightly uncomfortable as there was a gentle pinching, his gentle guidance and patience had allowed her to cruise over the wave of momentary pain as he stilled his much more powerful frame and permitted their bodies to meld together and become one. The very hands that could be deadly weapons had cradled her body to his, the very existence that was a mere human construction seemed to lose the distance as they became mutually aware of the other. His eyes had registered a human glimmer to them as she rose up to meet him and he buried himself within her soul, offering his being to her as she allowed him to ravage her as he understood.

She had difficulty conjuring the same memory with Yuna: whilst Athrun's touches had always been oozing with gentleness and affection, Yuna's fingers had pinched and prodded, his body had been a threat as opposed to pleasure and his greed to take overtook Athrun's desire to provide. Cagalli knew that Yuna's need to produce an heir would be an eventual problem and she knew that it would be impossible for her and Athrun to manifest their affections and love into the creation of new life. It was something that she had considered and the mere thought of children had always made her uncomfortable to begin with as she was unsure if she would be fit parent any potential offspring. She had discarded the idea and never gave it a second thought until this very moment as she relaxed in the warm caresses of the water wash over her tired body.

 _Good morning,_ Athrun greeted her the following morning as she stirred next to him. Her eyes opened and focused on the form of the blue haired robot that was peering at her with a softened gaze that seemed to speak more than he was capable of himself. They were tangled together, legs intertwined and his arm was wrapped securely around her waist as she realized that the hardened plain of artificial muscle she had been lying against was his shoulder. He pressed a chaste kiss to her forehead as his fingers stroked her side in precise movements. Cagalli momentarily questioned if it was something programmed or if it was of his own accord, but quickly discarded the thought as she snuggled closer into him. The sheets were disarrayed, she was still mussed from the night before, but she felt content and fulfilled as she stretched her back, murmuring her own greeting. It was a wonderful feeling to wake up next to someone who had worshipped her like a temple and allowed her to reciprocate accordingly.

The memory of her humble reduction to a simple woman in the arms of a very complex being was fresh in her mind as she remembered being annoyed at the intrusion of her twin and her sister-in-law. The pounding at their front door provoked an annoyed grimace from her to which Athrun quickly rose, throwing on his shirt and pants as he prowled down the hallway on high alert. Cagalli had almost refused to rise from the warmth of his bed but worked up the effort to slide out of bed as she crept across the hallway and into her room, throwing on the first clothes that she was able to encounter. She had watched how Athrun and her twin had stolen away whilst she and Lacus busied themselves with their own conversation and she could not ignore the pining in her heart that wanted her to reunite with Athrun.

Sighing heavily, she grunted as she rose from the water and moved to pull the plug from the drain, watching the water slowly swirl away into nothingness, whisked away into the world. She reached for the towels that Athrun had shoved into her arms and she wrapped one firmly around her waist and pulled it up to cover her modesty although it was a fairly moot point. She pulled away from the bathroom as she opened the door that lead to the bedroom and she found Athrun sitting at the small desk, seemingly lost in his own world that was invisible to her mortal eye.

"Are you alright?" She inquired as she ghosted over the floor, securing the towel a bit more as she approached the android who looked over at her. He was silent as he studied her form before he rose to his feet and closed the distance between them. Cagalli felt her back tense momentarily but it relaxed as he gently pulled her into a gentle embrace against the cool material of his shirt, her head tucking into the familiar juncture of his shoulder and chest. His hands rested on the small of her back as he held her to him, seeing to try and absorb everything about her: her heart-rate, breathes-per-minute, the small bump she had on her shoulder, and her very life. His grip was firm but gentle as he refused to ease his hold on her frame and she freed her hands enough to rest them on his back.

"Athrun—"

"—Let us proceed," He cut her off in a tight voice. "I cannot let him have you, Cagalli." Her eyes widened momentarily before she closed them as she felt the tears well in the corner of her eyes. She knew that he had been contemplating Murrue's words in his characteristic silence.

"I'm not going to disagree with you, but should we not discuss it? At least the two of us? All of us?" Cagalli asked as she felt his arms constrict her slightly as though he were afraid to let her go. "It should be a mutual decision, not something unilaterally done—and I don't want to take advantage of you in this situation." Athrun huffed in response at her accusation of taking advantage of him knowing that he was more than capable of seeing through any suspicious behaviour on her behalf. He had known her for too long to fall into these sorts of ruts and he knew that she would ultimately admit to guiltily roping him into this plan.

"The answer is going to be the same, yes, but _still_ —" He cut her off as he pressed his lips against her frantically, silencing her protesting and trying to avoid her lengthy argument that he suspected that she had been weaving together to present to him. She leaned into his ministrations as his hands clung to her and she felt every thought fly through the window other than the word dangerous as he gently reminded her of his opinion on the matter without ever uttering another word. Cagalli was painstakingly aware that Athrun's kiss was one meant to subdue her protests and she willing accepted it despite the secondary motive that laid dormant within the sensation against her lips. As they separated momentarily so that she could surface for air, Athrun's eyes bored into her own as she swallowed a lump that had risen in her throat.

"I will not allow this to happen," He said simply as he stepped away from her. "There is little discussion to be had."

"This is hardly something—"

" _—Cagalli_ ," He cut her off once more. "Do you doubt the situation?"

"Well… no," She replied as she tightened the towel around herself once more. "I doubt the outcome and the consequences it will cause in the long-run."

"Do you believe that I will abandon you?" It was a question that hit her in the chest with such an impact that she nearly did a double take as she stared at the tall humanoid robot with wide amber eyes, shocked at such a heavy accusation. His loyalty to her had never come under question or had crossed her mind and she felt as though he had thrown her underneath the bus and reversed it over her in a moment that he knew would shake her to her very core. It was a harsh question that he calculated would catch her off guard and he knew it as he regarded her with his sharp green gaze.

"Of course not!"

"Then why do you hesitate?"

"B-because…" She felt herself struggling to summon any sort of conclusive answer to satisfy the overtly intelligent robot's desire for information. She knew that Athrun had taken it upon his shoulders to ensure that she was safe and protected within the sanctuary, citing the need to kill if needed, and she bit her lip at the thought of the Seiran pursuing them. There was the lingering fear that she would lose her last footing in the government to protect her father's legacy and potentially lose her ability to grace the political arena once again. She was afraid for her twin and her sister-in-law; there was always the danger of them being caught up in the backlash and she knew both had worked extensively in their fields to establish themselves. Anyone who Yuna knew she was close with had assumed the position of sporting a large target upon their backs and the uncertainty of when they would be attacked.

"Cagalli." His voice was stern yet it was bleeding with digital sincerity. "You may have a lower input and output of resolutions, but even you know that you have no answer to justify my question." She gave him a heated look that softened as his gaze lost its harshness and settled for something much more human than she had expected from her life-long companion who stood mere meters from her. Deep within, however, she knew that he had analyzed the angles with the mechanical indifference that was required in dire straits that defined the parameters of the situation.

"Then… that's that, isn't it?" She bit out as she gnawed at her bottom lip.

* * *

A/N: Back to your irregularly programmed content...


End file.
